Opera Matinee

WETA Classical is Washington's home for opera year round. From December through early June, experience the power and passion of the Metropolitan Opera's Saturday Matinee Broadcasts. The rest of the year features performances from leading opera houses around the world.

Next Episode

Florencia en el Amazonas

December 9, 2023 1:00 pm

Daniel Catán

Sung in Spanish and inspired by the magical realism of Gabriel García Márquez, Mexican composer Daniel Catán’s 1996 opera Florencia en el Amazonas casts a Brazilian opera diva who returns to her homeland to perform and to search for her lost lover, who has vanished into the jungle. A live broadcast from the Metropolitan Opera and a Met premiere starring soprano Ailyn Pérez, conducted by Yannick...

  • The Magic Flute

    The Magic Flute

    December 16, 2023 12:00 pm

    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    The Met’s family-friendly production of Mozart’s dazzling fairy tale of love, revenge and morality, The Magic Flute, set in a mythical land between the sun and the moon. Sung in English and running under two hours. A live broadcast from the Metropolitan Opera, with Piotr Buszewski, Brindley Sherratt, and Met favorite Rolando Villazón as Papageno.
  • Tannhäuser

    Tannhäuser

    December 23, 2023 1:00 pm

    Richard Wagner

    Tannhäuser, Wagner’s ravishing opera of love, lust, and redemption in a story of the knight's struggle between the forces of earthly pleasure and sacred love. A live broadcast from the Metropolitan Opera with Austrian tenor Andreas Schager in the title role, conducted by Donald Runnicles.
  • Metropolitan Opera, New York

    Le Nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro)

    December 30, 2023 1:00 pm

    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    Mozart’s scintillating class comedy and eternal masterpiece in which cleverness, tricks and mistaken identity combine to outsmart a Count in his amorous pursuit. A special performance from the Met's archives from 1956, honoring the centenaries of legendary singers Cesare Siepi and Victoria de los Angeles.
  • Nabucco

    Nabucco

    January 6, 2024 1:00 pm

    Giuseppe Verdi

    Nabucco, Verdi's successful third opera, captures the dramatic fall of ancient Jerusalem at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar in patriotic fervor that includes the famous Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves (“Va, pensiero”), in which the Israelites express longing for their homeland. This live Metropolitan Opera broadcast features George Gagnidze in the title role.
  • La Bohème

    La Bohème

    January 13, 2024 12:30 pm

    Giacomo Puccini

    La Bohème, Puccin's passionate, timeless, and heartbreaking tale of love among young artists in Paris in the 19th century, owes its popularly to gorgeous arias, tender ensembles and luscious orchestration. This live broadcast from the Metropolitan Opera is conducted by Marco Armiliato.
  • Dead Man Walking

    Dead Man Walking

    January 20, 2024 1:00 pm

    Jake Heggie

    Dead Man Walking by Jake Heggie is based on activist Sister Helen Prejean’s bestselling eponymous memoir of justice and forgiveness takes us into the intimate and often unseen spaces where the innerworkings of the criminal justice system play out. A recording of the Metropolitan Opera's premiere in October 2023 features Joyce DiDonato as Sister Helen Prejean.
  • Carmen

    Carmen

    January 27, 2024 1:00 pm

    Georges Bizet

    Carmen, Bizet’s searing drama about a free-spirited Gypsy and the soldier who enters into a fateful romance with her, is an audience favorite, full of memorable melodies. This live broadcast by The Metropolitan Opera features Aigul Akhmetshina in the title role and renowned tenor Piotr Beczała as Don José.