I Puritani

When this production opened, it had been more than half a century since Met audiences had last heard Bellini’s gem of an opera. It was well worth the wait. “The best cast in the world,” was how one critic described the legendary performers the Met brought together. The pair sent audiences into a frenzy with their sumptuous, dazzling singing. Joan Sutherland, dubbed “La Stupenda” by her fans and the press, is the hapless heroine Elvira who loses her heart—and her sanity—over Luciano Pavarotti, the Cavalier hero torn between love and duty.