THE ENCHANTED ISLAND Returns to the Met Tonight

The Baroque pastiche The Enchanted Island, a hit when it premiered at the Met in 2011, returns for its first revival tonight, February 26.

New cast members Susan Graham (Sycorax) and Andriana Chuchman (Miranda) join many of the principal singers who appeared in the work's world premiere: David Daniels as Prospero, Plácido Domingo as Neptune, Danielle de Niese as Ariel, Anthony Roth Costanzo as Ferdinand, and Luca Pisaroni as Caliban. The four mismatched Athenian lovers will be sung by Elizabeth DeShong, who sang Hermia in the world premiere, joined by new cast members Janai Brugger (Helena), Andrew Stenson (Demetrius), and Nicholas Pallesen (Lysander) completing the quartet of Athenian lovers.

Patrick Summers conducts the work, a pastiche in the Baroque tradition that combines plot elements of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Tempest with music by Handel, Vivaldi, Rameau, and other leading composers of the era. In keeping with pastiche tradition, this season's revival will feature two Handel arias not heard in the work's premiere, "Stra nell'ircana" from Alcina for Sycorax and "Empio, per farti guerra" from Tamerlano for Neptune. (A complete list of musical sources for The Enchanted Island is available on page three of this release.) Jeremy Sams, who wrote and devised The Enchanted Island, has worked with Summers and director Phelim McDermott to oversee other adaptations to the work for this revival, including a repositioning of the intermission and changes to the lyrics in several scenes.

Susan Graham's more than 140 performances with the Met include Dido in last season's revival of Berlioz's Les Troyens; Octavian in Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier, which she has sung 25 times with the company, and the Composer in his Ariadne auf Naxos; Marguerite in the new production premiere of La Damnation de Faust; the title role in the new production premiere of Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride; Mozart's Sesto in La Clemenza di Tito, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, Dorabella in Così fan tutte, Idamante in Idomeneo, and Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro; the title role in Lehár's The Merry Widow; and Charlotte in Massenet's Werther. She has also starred in two world premieres at the Met, singing Jordan Baker in Harbison's The Great Gatsby and Sondra Finchley in Picker's An American Tragedy.

David Daniels sang the title role in last season's new production premiere of Handel's Giulio Cesare. He made his Met debut as Sesto in that opera in 1999, and also sang the title role in a 2007 revival. He starred as Prospero in the world premiere of The Enchanted Island. His other roles with the company have included Oberon in Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Bertarido in the Met premiere of Rodelinda, and Orfeo in the 2007 new production premiere of Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice.

Plácido Domingo added a new role to his ever-expanding Met repertory last season when he sang his first performances as Giorgio Germont in Verdi's La Traviata. His most recent Met appearances include Neptune in the world premiere of The Enchanted Island, Orest in Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride, the title character in Verdi's Simon Boccanegra, Maurizio in Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur, and Emperor Qin in the world premiere of Tan Dun's The First Emperor.

Danielle de Niese sang Despina earlier this season with James Levine in an acclaimed revival of Così fan tutte that returns to the Met stage in April. A graduate of the Met's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program, her other Met roles have included Cleopatra in Handel's Giulio Cesare, Ariel in the world premiere of The Enchanted Island, Euridice in Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice, and both Barbarina and Susanna in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro. She made her Met debut, at 19 years old, in the former role.

Andriana Chuchman made an acclaimed Met debut as Adina in Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore earlier this season, substituting for an ailing colleague. The Canadian soprano's recent performances with other opera companies have included Gretel in Humperdinck's Hansel und Gretel at Glyndebourne, Guinevere in Camelot at Glimmerglass, Magnolia in Show Boat at Washington National Opera, and Olympia in Offenbach's Les Contes d'Hoffmann at the Canadian Opera Company.

Anthony Roth Costanzo currently sings Orlofsky in the Met's new production of Strauss's Die Fledermaus. He made his Met debut in 2011 as Unulfo in Handel's Rodelinda. Later the same season, he originated the role of Ferdinand in The Enchanted Island and also sang some performances in the role of Prospero. Later this season, he sings Eustazio in Handel's Rinaldo at Glyndebourne.

Luca Pisaroni made his Met debut in 2005 as Publio in Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito. His other roles with the company have included Caliban in the world premiere of The Enchanted Island, the title role in Le Nozze di Figaro, and Leporello in the new production premiere of Don Giovanni. This April, he will sing Alidoro in a revival of Rossini's La Cenerentola.

Musical Sources for The Enchanted Island

The score to The Enchanted Island includes music from many Handel works, specifically the operas Alcina, Amadigi di Gaula, Ariodante, Atalanta, Deidamia, Partenope, Semele, Tamerlano, and Teseo; the oratorios Hercules, Judas Maccabaeus, La Resurrezione, Susanna, and Il Trionfo del Tempo a del Disinganno; the cantatas "Tanti strali al sen mi scocchi" and "Notte placida e cheta"; the ode "L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato"; and "Zadok the Priest," one of the composer's Four Coronation Anthems.

The other works represented in The Enchanted Island are Vivaldi's operas Il Bajazet, Farnace, Griselda, Tito Manlio, and La Verità in Cimento, his cantata "Cessate, omai cessate," and his motet "Longe mala, umbrae, terrores"; Rameau's operas Les fêtes d'Hébé, Hippolyte et Aricie, and Les Indes Galantes; Campra's opera Idoménée; Ferrandini's cantata "Il Pianto di Maria," often attributed to Handel; Leclair's opera Scylla et Glaucus; Purcell's opera The Tempest, or, The Enchanted Island; and Rebel's ballet Les Élémens.

The Enchanted Island Radio Broadcasts

The February 26 opening performance of The Enchanted Island will be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS XM Channel 74, as will the performances on March 8 and 20. The February 26 and March 8 performances will also be streamed live on the Met's website, www.metopera.org.

The March 8 matinee performance will be broadcast live over the Toll Brothers-Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network.

For more information on this season's performances of The Enchanted Island, visit the Met's website at www.metopera.org.

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