MET Opera House–Lincoln Center–Tuesday April 20th, 2026.
Welcome back friends.
Yay!
This week, friends, welcome back once again, to the wonderful world of opera, and to an iconic and another extremely popular work of the canon, and this time, by the great, the revered, the adored, the amazing, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1813-1901).
Yay!
Welcome to Tchaikovsky’s (1878) “Eugene Onegin”.
Filled with extraordinarily expressive, beautiful, and romantic melodies, and also, a few incredibly lyrical arias, (my favorite being between the tenor and the baritone, as they are about to embark on a duel against one another in Act 2, sung with great pathos), the emotional depth of this incredibly moving 3 acts opera, always strikes me, especially because the lead protagonists, are all young, opening themselves to life’s possibilities. And sometimes, they get it right, and sometimes they fail miserably.
Wow and how about that!
“Eugene Onegin”, with a libretto by Tchaikovsky himself, is actually, believe it or not, adapted from an epic verse novel of the same name, by Pushkin (1799-1837), one of the most celebrated novelists in Russia, and elsewhere.
Wow.
So what is the plot about?
“Eugene Onegin” describes with great insight and humanity, the tragic difficulty that the anti-hero has to develop long term relationships with peers, whether with young girls, or closer friends: in act 1, boy meets girl (Onegin meets Tatiana) in Russian countryside, when said boy (Onegin), accompanies a friend (Lenski), to go and visit a neighbor (Olga, Tatiana’s sister). By act 2, when Onegin and Lensky return to visit the neighbors, Onegin out of boredom, flirts with Lenski’s love interest, Olga, which leads Lenski to challenge Onegin to a duel, and later, Lenski dies eventually, further to the duel. Later in the story, in act 3, we discover Onegin in St Petersburg and at a ball, where he encounters again Tatiana, now married to a Russian prince (Gremin), he realizes he loves her, and Tatiana, while admitting she also, still loves him, explains that no future is possible for them, as she will not betray her husband.
Oh boy.
So sad. So much drama.
What to say of the production?
That in this classic, gorgeous (except for the country home in act 1 which lacked a bit of panache in my opinion), the early 19th century looking, Deborah Warner production, still provided stunning snowy “exteriors” in act 2, and superb ball like depictions in act 3, including chandeliers, gorgeous costumes, and beautiful ballets, which all contributed beautifully, to express the tragedy of this failed love story and friendship, and the evolution of Tatiana, from a dreamy idealistic youngster, to a poised and happy woman.
Wow and yay!
What to say about the conductor and performers?
That the orchestra, and all the singers, including the MET choruses, under the expert baton of maestro, Timur Zangiev, in his Met debut, were alive and passionate.
Wow. Just terrific.
And three extraordinary singers, to me, stood out more than any other performers: first, of course, in the title role, Ukrainian baritone, Iurii Samoilov, was extremely convincing as the charming, yet bored, Onegin. And what a gorgeous color he displays.
Bravo.
Lithuanian soprano, Asmik Grigorian, as Tatiana, the idealistic youngster, turned happy princess, was marvelous, and just as believable. And what great technique and clear voice, she has as well.
Wow and bravo!
And finally, what beautiful, warm and strong voice, for French tenor, Stanislas de Barbeyrac, as Lenski, the excessively petulant and jealous young man, who will be swept away, unfortunately by his irrepressible jealousy.
Wow and bravo.
So, to sum up my feelings, about Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin”, admired last Monday evening, in great company: what a timeless, beautiful, emotional, and tragic opera, filled with super moving arias, whose classic, gorgeous, 19th century looking, Warner production, brings depth and utter poetry to the tragic plot. And how especially awesome were Samoilov, Grigorian and Barbeyrac, to depict this beautiful, yet doomed, tragic and failed love and friendship story.
Wow and bravo!
Just terrific!
And not to be missed!
Until next time friends!
Soft…
Fluttering…
Sunny…
Joyful…
Happy…
Loving…
Eternal butterflies …