The Presentation

Excerpts of the opera will be played during the presentation. Harvey will provide an overview of the story of the opera and point of hightlights of the performance.

La Forza del Destino, the Opera

Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Verdi’s grand tale of ill-fated love, deadly vendetta, and family strife, with stellar soprano Lise Davidsen following a string of recent Met triumphs with her role debut as the noble Leonora, one of the repertory’s most tormented—and thrilling—heroines. Director Mariusz Treliński delivers the company’s first new Forza in nearly 30 years, setting the scene in a contemporary world and making extensive use of the Met’s turntable to represent the unstoppable advance of destiny that drives the opera’s chain of calamitous events. The distinguished cast also features tenor Brian Jagde as Leonora’s forbidden beloved Don Alvaro, baritone Igor Golovatenko as her vengeful brother Don Carlo, mezzo-soprano Judit Kutasi as the fortune teller Preziosilla, bass-baritone Patrick Carfizzi as Fra Melitone, and bass Soloman Howard as both Leonora’s father and Padre Guardiano. For the final three performances, soprano Elena Stikhina and mezzo-soprano Maria Barakova take over as Leonora and Preziosilla.

The Presenter

Harvey Nystrom, a retiree to Oaxaca, has brought his passion and knowledge along with his substantial collection of opera DVDs to share with us.