A boon for opera lovers is the ongoing “Great Performances at the Met” series presented by PBS, WNET THIRTEEN in New York. It is possible to see impressive stage works at the Metropolitan Opera House brought to the home screen, thanks to this astute “Great Performances” programming, which also includes various other major attractions.
The colorful star Renée Fleming will be the attraction in Handel’s “Rodelinda,” on Sunday, April 22, at noon on PBS Stations. In New York, THIRTEEN will premiere it earlier, Thursday, April 19 at 8:30 p.m. If you miss that—or perhaps you would like to see it twice—it will also be broadcast on THIRTEEN on April 22 at 12:30 p.m. (Local listings should always be checked.)
Other cast members in the opera include Andreas Scholl, Stephanie Blythe, Iestyn Davies and Joseph Kaiser. The production is by Stephen Wadsmorth, with the musical conductor Harry Bicket.
Those who have followed the “Great Performances” series know the riches of the diverse programming. Past broadcasts have included such productions as Philip Glass’s “Satyagraha” at The Met, “The Phantom of the Opera” at Royal Albert Hall in London, “The Thomashefskys: Music and Memories of a Life in the Yiddish Theater,” Plácido Domingo in “Il Postino" from the LA Opera, and “Don Giovanni” at the Met.