The Metropolitan Opera’s 2024-25 season of Saturday matinee broadcasts continues on March 22 at 1:00 p.m. with a captivating double bill of French operas from the Met archives. This special pre-recorded performance from 1981 brings together two contrasting yet equally enchanting works: Maurice Ravel’s “L’Enfant et les Sortilèges” and Francis Poulenc’s “Les Mamelles de Tirésias.”
First, we celebrate the 100th anniversary of “L’Enfant et les Sortilèges” (The Child and the Enchantments), Ravel’s whimsical opera with a libretto by the legendary French writer Colette. The story follows a mischievous child, sung by mezzo-soprano Hilda Harris, who is suddenly confronted by the objects and animals he has mistreated.
The second half of the broadcast brings the lively and surreal “Les Mamelles de Tirésias” (The Breasts of Tiresias) by Francis Poulenc. This comic opera, inspired by the absurdist play by Guillaume Apollinaire, follows Thérèse, a housewife who decides to abandon traditional gender roles to become a general. Soprano Catherine Malfitano leads the cast as Thérèse, while baritone David Holloway portrays her husband, who takes on the role of childbearing in an outrageous twist. The esteemed French conductor Manuel Rosenthal, a friend of both composers, leads the Met Orchestra and Chorus in this extraordinary performance.
If you enjoy broadcasts like these, consider supporting us by making a donation today. Your contribution helps keep great opera on the air every Saturday at 1 p.m. here on WHRO-FM, or online.
