Falstaff in Photos: A Feast for the Eyes

Opera director Robert Carsen’s production of Falstaff is a special one you won’t want to miss, with vivid costumes by Brigitte Reiffenstuel and a setting in 1950s England that winks at the eras of Shakespeare and Verdi. Colors pop in the Formica kitchen, pomp reigns in chandelier-lighted and oak-paneled rooms and mystery envelops dreamlike scenes of mistaken identity.

Metropolitan Opera photographer Ken Howard has captured a picture-book spread of photos to beguile Falstaff aficionados and the uninitiated alike. Tune in to Great Performances at the Met: Falstaff on Sunday, April 13 at 12 p.m. on PBS for the Metropolitan Opera’s new production of Verdi’s comic masterpiece, conducted by James Levine.