The Met: Live in HD 2013-14 Season to Kick Off 10/5 with EUGENE ONEGIN

The Met: Live in HD, the Metropolitan Opera's award-winning series of live transmissions to movie theaters, will reach its widest-ever global audience in its eighth season, which begins on October 5 with a new production of Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. Met Music Director James Levine makes his highly-anticipated return to the screen with Verdi's Falstaff on December 14 and the first Live in HD performance of Mozart's Così fan tutte on April 26. The Live in HD series, the world's largest provider of alternative content, reaches more than 1,900 theaters in 64 countries, and offers subtitles in nine languages, including Swedish for the first time this season. To accommodate audience demand in Europe, more than 85 cinemas have been added to the HD network in Germany, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

The geographical breakdown of the number of theaters worldwide includes 748 in the U.S (with 653 theaters through National CineMedia); 167 in Germany; 112 in Canada; 91 in France; 175 in the United Kingdom (an increase of more than 45 theaters from last season); and 152 in Sweden (also an increase of more than 30 theaters).

"We are happy to once again serve up an exciting mix of operas and opera stars to our loyal audiences watching live from Vancouver to Moscow, and on a delayed basis in Asia, Africa, Australia and New Zealand," said Peter Gelb, the Met's General Manager and Executive Producer of the transmissions. "While the world may roil, operatically it is in harmony on our live transmission days."

The series opens on October 5 with Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, starring Anna Netrebko, Mariusz Kwiecien, and Piotr Beczala inDeborah Warner's new production, conducted by Valery Gergiev and directed by Fiona Shaw in her Met debut, and also includes William Kentridge's innovative production of Shostakovich's The Nose, starring Paulo Szot (October 26); Puccini's classic drama Tosca, with Patricia Racette as the tempestuous title character and Robert Alagna as her devoted lover (November 9); the return of Met Music Director James Levineleading a new production of Verdi's Falstaff, directed by Robert Carsen (December 14); Renée Fleming in one of her signature roles, the title character in Dvo?ák's Rusalka, conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin (February 8); a new production of Borodin's rarely heard epic Prince Igor, conducted by Gianandrea Noseda, directed by Dmitri Tcherniakov in his Met debut, and starring Ildar Abdrazakov in the title role (March 1);Jonas Kaufmann and Sophie Koch in a new staging by Richard Eyre of Massenet's tragic romance Werther (March 15); Puccini's timeless love story La Bohème, with Vittorio Grigolo starring in Franco Zeffirelli's immensely popular production (April 5); the first Live in HD performance of Mozart's Così fan tutte, starring Susanna Phillips, Isabel Leonard, Danielle De Niese, and Matthew Polenzani (April 26); and Joyce DiDonatoand Juan Diego Flórez in Rossini's Cinderella story La Cenerentola, led by Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi (May 10).

Sondra Radvanovsky, Patricia Racette, Renée Fleming, Susan Graham, Eric Owens, Joyce DiDonato, and Deborah Voigt will serve as hosts for the Live in HD presentations this season, conducting live interviews with cast, crew, and production teams, and introducing the popular behind-the-scenes interviews and features.

All 10 high-definition productions will be shown live worldwide on Saturdays. Most operas begin at 12:55 p.m. EST, with some operas beginning earlier in the afternoon; exact starting times appear on the schedule below. The majority of encore presentations in the United States will be shown on Wednesdays evenings, immediately following the live transmission. For complete information on locations and tickets, visitwww.metopera.org/hdlive.

The Met: Live in HD series is made possible by a generous grant from its founding sponsor, The Neubauer Family Foundation. Global corporate sponsorship of The Met: Live in HD is provided by Bloomberg. Transmission of The Met: Live in HD in Canada is made possible thanks to the generosity of Jacqueline and Paul G. Desmarais Sr. The HD broadcasts are supported by Toll Brothers, America's luxury home builder.

The Met: Live in HD Complete 2012-13 Schedule

*Saturday, Oct. 5, 2013 - EUGENE ONEGIN (12:55 p.m. ET)
Anna Netrebko and Mariusz Kwiecien star as the lovestruck Tatiana and the imperious Onegin in Tchaikovsky's fateful romance. Deborah Warner's new production, directed by Fiona Shaw, is set in the late 19th century and captures the splendor and passion of Tchaikovsky's opera.Piotr Beczala is Lenski, Onegin's friend turned rival. Russian maestro Valery Gergiev conducts.

Saturday, Oct. 26, 2013 - THE NOSE (12:55 p.m. ET)
William Kentridge stormed the Met with his inventive production of Shostakovich's opera, which dazzled opera and art lovers alike in its sold-out inaugural run in 2010. Now Paulo Szot reprises his acclaimed performance of a bureaucrat, whose satirical misadventures in search of his missing nose are based on Gogol's comic story. Pavel Smelkov conducts.

Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013 - TOSCA (12:55 p.m. ET)
Puccini's timeless verismo score is well served by an exceptional cast, led by Patricia Racette in the title role of the jealous diva, opposite Roberto Alagna as her lover, Cavaradossi. George Gagnidze is the villainous Scarpia.

*Saturday, Dec. 14, 2013 - FALSTAFF (12:55 p.m. ET)
An undisputed master of Falstaff, Music Director James Levine conducts Verdi's opera for the first time at the Met since 2005. Robert Carsen's production-the first new Met Falstaff since 1964-is set in the English countryside in the mid-20th century. Ambrogio Maestri sings the title role of the blustery Sir John Falstaff, opposite a marvelous ensemble that includes Angela Meade, Stephanie Blythe, Lisette Oropesa and Franco Vassallo.

Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014 -RUSALKA (12:55 p.m. ET)
The great Renée Fleming returns to one of her signature roles, singing the enchanting "Song to the Moon" in Dvorák's soulful fairy-tale opera. Tenor Piotr Beczala co-stars as the Prince, Dolora Zajick is Ježibaba, and dynamic young maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin is on the podium.

*Saturday, March 1, 2014 - PRINCE IGOR (12:00 p.m. ET)
Borodin's defining Russian epic, famous for its Polovtsian Dances, comes to the Met for the first time in nearly 100 years. Dmitri Tcherniakov'snew production is a brilliant psychological journey through the mind of its conflicted hero, with the founding of the Russian nation as the backdrop. Star bass-baritone Ildar Abdrazakov takes on the monumental title role, with Gianandrea Noseda conducting.

*Saturday, March 15, 2014 - WERTHER (12:55 p.m. ET)
Jonas Kaufmann stars in the title role of Massenet's sublime adaptation of Goethe's revolutionary and tragic romance, opposite Sophie Koch as Charlotte. The new production is directed and designed by Richard Eyre and Rob Howell, the same team that created the Met's recent hit staging ofCarmen. Maestro Alain Altinoglu conducts.

Saturday, April 5, 2014 - LA BOHÈME (12:55 p.m. ET)
Puccini's moving story of young love is the most performed opera in Met history-and with good reason. Anita Hartig stars as the frail Mimì inFranco Zeffirelli's classic production, with Vittorio Grigolo as her passionate lover, Rodolfo, Susanna Phillips as Musetta and Massimo Cavalletti as Marcello.

Saturday, April 26, 2014 - COSÌ FAN TUTTE (12:55 p.m. ET)
Music Director James Levine conducts Mozart's beloved opera about testing the ties of love. The cast is filled with youthful Met stars: Susanna Phillips and Isabel Leonard are the sisters Fiordiligi and Dorabella, Matthew Polenzani and Rodion Pogossov are their lovers, with Danielle De Niese as the clever Despina and Maurizio Muraro as the cynical Don Alfonso.

Saturday, May 10, 2014 - LA CENERENTOLA (12:55 p.m. ET)
A peerless pair of Rossini virtuosos joins forces in "La Cenerentola"-a vocal tour de force for mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato, singing her first Met performances of the Cinderella title role, and the high-flying tenor Juan Diego Flórez, as her Prince Charming. Alessandro Corbelli as Cenerentola's stepfather Don Magnifico, and Luca Pisaroni as Don Ramiro's tutor, Alidoro, with Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi leading the effervescent score.

*New Production

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