Past Events 2020

February 24, 2020: Camille Saint-Saens: Samson et Dalila

81 opera fans were in attendance for this powerful performance recorded live at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York in 1998 of Saint-Saens’s pivotal French opera Samson et Dalila. The opera featured legendary Spanish tenor Placido Domingo as the heroic Samson, Russian mezzo-soprano Olga Borodina as the seductive Delilah, Russian baritone Sergei Leiferkus as the High Priest of Dagon, and the renowned German bass Rene Pape as the Old Hebrew. Maestro James Levine masterfully led the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Chorus and Ballet. At intermission our guests enjoyed a magnificent Middle-Eastern-themed reception, prepared by our very own chef-in-residence Roslyn Blitzer, and our Friends of the Opera. The fantastic menu du jour featured platters of Turkish turkey meatballs served w/tzatziki sauce, carmelized onions & goat cheese spread on pita slices drizzled w/honey, and Middle-Eastern deviled eggs made w/harissa, yogurt, mustard & mint. The desserts included platters of Moroccan bread pudding layered w/almond paste, coconut &mixed fruits, lemon curd cupcakes, and oatmeal, sesame & raisin cookies. Our guests also enjoyed a refreshing cup of our special Seduction Punch, made with mango, apple, pear, & passion fruit juices, and mixed with apple-flavored sparkling water, all to enjoy with their chosen delicacies. In March 2020 we will proudly feature Giacomo Puccini’s opera Manon Lescaut. This will be an outstanding production, one you won’t want to miss, and as always, we look forward to bringing you many more outstanding operatic and special performances every month throughout the upcoming year 2020.

January 27, 2020: Mozart: Don Giovanni

73 opera fans were in attendance for this celebrated performance recorded live at the Festspielhaus in Baden-Baden in May 2013 of Mozart’s greatest opera Don Giovanni. The opera featured bass-baritone Erwin Schrott in his signature role as Don Giovanni, soprano Anna Netrebko as Donna Anna, bass-baritone Luca Pisaroni as Leporello, mezzo-soprano Malena Ernman as Donna Elvira, tenor Charles Castronovo as Don Ottavio, with bass Mario Luperi as the Commendatore, mezzo-soprano Katija Dragojevic as Zerlina, and bass-baritone Jonathan Lemalu as Masetto. Maestro Thomas Hengelbrock skillfully conducted the Balthasar-Neumann-Chor & Ensemble. At intermission our guests enjoyed a wonderful Italian-themed reception, prepared by our very own chef-in-residence Roslyn Blitzer, and our Friends of the Opera. The fantastic menu du jour featured platters of three-cheese pizza rolls w/homemade tomato sauce & parmesan cheese, provolone-stuffed salami rolls w/green olives, and spinach-cheddar rice balls & sauce. The desserts included platters of apple butter & caramel cake slices, black & white cupcakes, and homemade snickerdoodle cookies. Our guests also enjoyed a refreshing cup of our special Passion Punch, made with passion fruit and cranberry juices, and mixed with strawberry-flavored sparkling water and fresh-cut strawberries, all to enjoy with their chosen delicacies. In February 2019 we will proudly feature Camille Saint-Saens’s Biblical opera Samson et Dalila. This will be an outstanding production, one you won’t want to miss, and as always, we look forward to bringing you many more outstanding operatic and special performances every month throughout the upcoming year 2020.