{"product_id":"the-metropolitan-opera-stories-of-the-great-operas-9780393040517","title":"The Metropolitan Opera: Stories of the Great Operas","description":"The opera-goer's indispensable guide. About to see Rossini's \u003cem\u003eWilliam Tell\u003c\/em\u003e, Verdi's \u003cem\u003eI Lombardi\u003c\/em\u003e, Gluck's \u003cem\u003eAlceste\u003c\/em\u003e, Philzner's \u003cem\u003ePalestrina\u003c\/em\u003e, Britten's \u003cem\u003eA Midsummer Night's Dream?\u003c\/em\u003e The stories of these operas and 120 others are told, clearly and concisely, in this companion volume to the highly successful \u003cem\u003eMetropolitan Open Stories of the Great Operas\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003cem\u003eOpera News\u003c\/em\u003e associate editor John W. Freeman untangles and summarizes the often complicated plots and provides, in addition, an informative biographical sketch of each composer, world and U.S. premiere dates, lists of characters, and other background information. The works included here are selected from the repertory of European and American opera companies. They span more than three and one-half centuries, from Monteverdi's \u003cem\u003eIl Ritorno d'Ulisse in Patria\u003c\/em\u003e (1640) to Philip Glass's \u003cem\u003eThe Voyage\u003c\/em\u003e (1992), and are set in venues as diverse as the legendary Palace of Time (Lully's \u003cem\u003eAtys\u003c\/em\u003e) and twentieth-century Manhattan (Anthony Davis's \u003cem\u003eX: The Life and Times of Malcolm X\u003c\/em\u003e). The operas are arranged alphabetically by composer and indexed by all the usual versions of the title (e.g., \u003cem\u003eDer Zigeunerbaron\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Gypsy Baron\u003c\/em\u003e). Published jointly by the Metropolitan Opera Guild and W. W. Norton, the book is not only a most valuable resource but also, as Beverly Sills notes in her foreword, immense fun just to read.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSills, Beverly:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \"\u003cstrong\u003eBeverly Sills\u003c\/strong\u003e (b. 1929 - d. 2007) was an American opera singer, general manager of the New York City Opera, Chairman of Lincoln Center, and Chairman of the Metropolitan Opera.\"","brand":"W. W. Norton \u0026 Company","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50844421980434,"sku":"9780393040517","price":42.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_4425d3bc-5107-445b-9d1c-85fe82a9bb4b.jpg?v=1737319848","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-metropolitan-opera-stories-of-the-great-operas-9780393040517","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}