Premieres Nationwide Sunday, March 25, at 12:00pm on PBS (check local listings)
Season 12 of Great Performances at the Met continues on PBS on Sunday, March 25, at 12:00pm with the American premiere of Thomas Adès’s The Exterminating Angel, a surreal fantasy about a dinner party from which the guests can’t escape. The Exterminating Angel was inspired by the classic Luis Buñuel film of the same name, and stars John Tomlinson and Alice Coote. Mezzo-soprano Susan Graham is the host.
Thomas Adès’s production is set in a luxurious mansion at the beginning of a fancy party. Inexplicably, all the servants, except the butler Julio, escape the De Nobile mansion while guests enjoy their meal. The guests feel no motivation to go home and instead make themselves comfortable for the night. When morning comes and the guests realize they can’t leave, panic sets in and two visitors take their own lives, while another, who was ill, dies. Suddenly, Leticia realizes that everyone is in exactly the same place as when their captivity began. They repeat their actions from the first night and are ultimately able to escape, but their freedom will not last long.
Amanda Echalaz as Lucia de Nobile, Sally Matthews as Silvia de Ávila, and Iestyn Davies as Francisco de Ávila in Adès’ “The Exterminating Angel.” Credit: Ken Howard/Metropolitan Opera
Airdates:
National: Sunday, March 25, at 12:00pm
New York: Sunday, March 25 at 1:00pm on THIRTEEN
Notable Talent:
Alice Coote – Leonora Palma
Iestyn Davies – Francesco
Audrey Luna – Leticia Maynar
Sally Matthews – Silvia De Ávila
Christine Rice – Blanca Delgado
Sir John Tomlinson – Doctor Carlos Conde
Run time: 2.5 hours
Production Credits:
Thomas Adès – Conductor and Composer
Tom Cairns – Production and Co-Librettist
Hildegard Bechtler – Set and Costume Designer
Jon Clark – Lighting Designer
Tal Yarden – Projection Designer
Amir Hosseinpour – Choreographer
For the Met, Gary Halvorson directs the telecast. David Frost is Music Producer. Mia Bongiovanni and Elena Park are Supervising Producers, and Louisa Briccetti and Victoria Warivonchik are Producers. Peter Gelb is Executive Producer. For Great Performances, Bill O’Donnell is Series Producer; David Horn is Executive Producer.
Series Overview:
Great Performances at the Met is a presentation of THIRTEEN Productions LLC for WNET, bringing the best of the Metropolitan Opera into the homes of classical music fans across the United States.
