Photo Flash: First Look at Anna Netrebko in Donizetti's L'ELISIR D'AMORE

Anna Netrebko will reprise her portrayal of Adina, the irresistible heroine of Donizetti's comic romance L'Elisir d'Amore, for seven performances beginning January 9. Ramón Vargas sings the role of Nemorino, the peasant who loves her, in a cast that also includes Nicola Alaimo in his first Met performances as Belcore and Erwin Schrott as the questionably credentialed Doctor Dulcamara. Maurizio Benini, who led the premiere of Bartlett Sher's production on opening night of the Met's 2012-13 season, returns to conduct the bel canto favorite. Check out a sneak peek below!

This season, Anna Netrebko became the first soprano in the Met's 130-year history to star in three consecutive opening night performances when she made her house role debut as Tatiana in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. She sang her first Adina at the Met on opening night of the 2012-13 season and starred in the company premiere of Donizetti's Anna Bolenato open the 2011-12 season. Netrebko made her Met debut in 2002 as Natasha Rostova in the Met premiere of Prokofiev'sWar and Peace. Her 14 roles with the company have also included the title character in Massenet's Manon, both Mimì and Musetta in Puccini's La Bohème, Antonia in Offenbach's Les Contes d'Hoffmann, the title role in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, Norina in Donizetti's Don Pasquale, and Elvira in Bellini's I Puritani.

Ramón Vargas has sung more than 200 Met performances in a repertory of 19 roles. He sang his first Nemorino with the company in 1998 and reprised the role in 2006. He made his Met debut as another Donizetti hero, Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, in 1992. In recent seasons, his leading roles with the company have included the title role in Verdi's Don Carlo,Don Ottavio in the new production premiere of Mozart's Don Giovanni, Rodolfo in La Bohème, Gabriele Adorno in Verdi'sSimon Boccanegra, the title role in Berlioz's La Damnation de Faust, and Foresto in the Met premiere of Verdi's Attila.

Nicola Alaimo sings the title role in two performances of Robert Carsen's new production of Falstaff at the Met this season. He made his company debut in 2011 as Paolo in Verdi's Simon Boccanegra. His most recent performances as Belcore were at the Vienna State Opera during the 2011-12 season.

Erwin Schrott sang Dulcamara at the Met for the first time last season. His other performances with the company have included both the title role and Leporello in Don Giovanni, Colline in La Bohème, Escamillo in Bizet's Carmen, and the title role in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro.

Maurizio Benini's more than 150 Met performances have included the new production premieres of L'Elisir d'Amore,Don Pasquale, and Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia, and the company premieres of Donizetti's Maria Stuarda and Rossini's Le Comte Ory. He has also led Met performances of Verdi's Rigoletto, La Traviata, and Luisa Miller, Rossini's La Cenerentola,Gounod's Faust, and Bellini's Norma.

The January 9 opening performance of L'Elisir d'Amore will be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS XM Channel 74, as will the performances on January 21, 25, and 29. The January 9 and 29 performances will also be streamed live on the Met's website, www.metopera.org.

The January 25 matinee performance will be broadcast live over the Toll Brothers-Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network.

For more information on this season's performances of L'Elisir d'Amore, please visit the Met's website at http://www.metopera.org.

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