New York, NY (November 7, 2006) – CBS-TV’s “Late Show with David Letterman” will present five opera stars in the stirring Act I finale from the Met’s new production of Rossini’s comic masterpiece Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) on Wednesday, November 8 at 11:35 PM/ET. The “Late Show” appearance provides an enticing first glimpse of the Met’s highly anticipated production directed by Bartlett Sher, which premieres on Friday, November 10.
Famed tenor Juan Diego Flórez, soprano Diana Damrau, and baritone Peter Mattei will join Wendy White, Samuel Ramey, and John Del Carlo, a chorus of 12, and 22 members of the Met Orchestra to perform the scene, conducted by Maurizio Benini. The performance will be one of the largest musical productions ever presented on the show, and the first time Letterman has presented a full scene from an opera. The Met Orchestra and Chorus have been reduced in size by half to accommodate the “Late Show” stage.
Acclaimed theater director Bartlett Sher helms this story about the irrepressible barber Figaro and his convoluted and comical plot to bring two lovers together. The Met's first new production of Barber in 25 years has been created by Sher and his Tony Award–winning artistic dream team behind the Broadway hit The Light in the Piazza.
The Barber of Seville is one of the most popular operas ever written, famously parodied in animated cartoons starring Woody Woodpecker (The Barber of Seville), Bugs Bunny (Rabbit of Seville) and Tex Avery's Magical Maestro. The Seinfeld episode The Barber also contains brief snippets of music from the opera in which Jerry is seen sneaking around his barber's back with the apprentice. In the 1993 film Mrs. Doubtfire, Robin Williams sings the aria as a cartoon bird.
The November 10 premiere will also be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on Sirius (Channel 85), and the performance will be streamed live on the Met web site at metopera.org. The production will be broadcast live into movie theaters in high definition (HD) on Saturday, March 24 at 1:30 PM/ET; 11:30 AM/PT.
“Late Show with David Letterman” can be seen on CBS at 11:35pm ET/PT (Channel 2 in the New York metropolitan area).
About the Met
Under the leadership of new General Manager Peter Gelb, the Met has launched many initiatives to connect the company with a larger audience. They include a first-ever free open house that offered the public an opportunity to attend the final dress rehearsal of Madama Butterfly; an extensive Madama Butterfly transit advertising campaign in New York City during the month of September; $15 tickets (formerly $26) in the Family Circle section; the new Agnes Varis and Karl Leichtman Rush Ticket program that offers 200 orchestra seats deeply discounted to $20 for weekday performances, available at the box office two hours before curtain; the new Arnold and Marie Schwartz Gallery Met exhibiting contemporary art; a groundbreaking commissioning program in partnership with the Lincoln Center Theater that provides renowned composers and playwrights the resources to create and develop new works at the Met and Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater; and dynamic new content on the web site, the house program, and the radio broadcasts.
The Met recently announced the use of advanced distribution platforms and state-of-the-art technology to attract new audiences and reach millions of opera fans around the world. On September 25, “Metropolitan Opera Radio on Sirius” launched as a 24-hour satellite radio channel broadcasting live and rare historical performances. The Met presents free live streaming of performances from its website once every week with support from RealNetworks. Beginning on December 30, the Met will transmit six of its performances live in HD into movie theaters in the United States, Canada, and Europe that have been equipped with high-definition projection systems and satellite dishes.
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Press Contact:
Sommer Hixson/Peter Clark
Metropolitan Opera
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