Ranking the Simulcasts 2006-07

I'm going to rank the simulcasts from the Metropolitan Opera that I saw:

Eugene Onegin was the best. It worked on every level. Its stars, Renée Fleming and Dmitri Hvorostovsky, were beautiful and intense, at the peak of their careers. The music was breathtaking and the ending touching. There are two operas where a man walks into the scene and the woman immediately falls madly in love with him. In those cases he should look as gorgeous as Dmitri did here. Guess the other.

Barber of Seville would win if it weren't comedy. It was very funny and the singing was absolutely fabulous.

I Puritani is third, but you may feel free to attack this choice. I enjoyed watching and hearing Anna Netrebko in this role, but I don't think it will ever be one of her favorites or ours. Except for Norma, it is the best Bellini I've ever seen.

Il Trittico ranks so low because it just isn't that interesting. The Met put out for this production and got the most possible out of it. I wish I liked it more.

The First Emperor comes last by default. Every single production was about as good as it gets. This was fabulous for the fascinating elements of plot and orchestration.

I didn't hate anything. I thought Onegin was one of my best opera experiences ever. Our lives are better because of this.