La traviata(30 January 2019), features a star cast including Royal Opera favourite Plácido Domingo. The opera tells the story of theParisian courtesan Violetta (Ermonela Jaho) and her tragic love affair with Alfredo Germont (Charles Castronovo). Their romantic idyll in the countryside ends abruptly when Alfredo’s father Giorgio (Domingo), shocked by their scandalous liaison, persuades Violetta to leave Alfredo for the good of his family –even though he knows Violetta is seriously ill. A distraught Alfredo finallylearns the truth when Violetta is on her death bed. The opera contains some of Verdi’smost inspired arias including Violetta’s ‘Sempre libera’ and ‘Addio del passato’. Antonello Manacordamakes his Royal Opera debut as conductor.

Superstar Anna Netrebko makes her long-awaited Met role debut after providing a hair-raising preview in 2019’s New Year’s Eve Gala alongside Tenor Yonghoon Lee as the bold prince determined to win Turandot’s love, alongside soprano Ermonela Jaho as the devoted servant Liù and bass Ferruccio Furlanetto as the blind king Timur. Marco Armiliato conducts Puccini’s stirring score.

When Australian composer Brett Dean’s Hamlet had its world premiere at the Glyndebourne Festival in 2017, The Guardian declared, “New opera doesn’t often get to sound this good … Shakespeare offers a gauntlet to composers that shouldn’t always be picked up, but Dean’s Hamlet rises to the challenge.” Now, this riveting contemporary masterpiece arrives at the Met, with Neil Armfield, who directed the work’s premiere, bringing his acclaimed staging to New York. Many of the original cast members have followed, including tenor Allan Clayton in the title role. Nicholas Carter makes his Met debut conducting a remarkable ensemble, which also features soprano Brenda Rae as Ophelia, mezzo-soprano Sarah Connolly as Gertrude, baritone Rod Gilfry as Claudius, and legendary bass John Tomlinson as the ghost of Hamlet’s father.