Verdi: Macbeth at The Metropolitan Opera | Live Review

Opera Now ^ | October 12, 2026

[Miami Rebel]

The Metropolitan Opera opened its 2026-2027 season with a new, splendid production of Verdi’s Macbeth cast from the company’s absolute strengths and a few fine debutants. Director Louisa Proske is best known to New York audiences as co-founder and co-artistic director of the small, innovative and frequently brilliant Heartbeat Opera and has more recently been director at Opera Halle and guest director at several opera companies. Here, in her Met debut, she has scored a triumph with Macbeth, capturing its gloom and Dark Ages atmosphere in a manner that can best be described as dystopic. Working on John Bauser’s revolving sets - the best use of the Met’s turntable in years - which summoned up a world-after-a-war as seen through a smashed hole as a proscenium, Ms Proske added Verdi’s and Shakespeare’s Witches to almost every scene (24 strong plus a dozen dancing about), slithering in and out in their gray, rag-like dresses and hideous make-up, not so subtly implying the omnipresence of menace and evil.

Revolving silently and slowly, each scene - bedroom, courtyard - was stony, cold and gray; the only colors were supplied by Lady M’s handsome, plush costumes (Montana Levi Blanco) and the sickly lighting by Adam Silverman. Hideous imagery was sprinkled throughout: A wild boar was laid out for dinner in the banquet scene; it turned into a bloody Banquo for Macbeth’s hallucination. And a blood-soaked child wearing a crown during the 3rd act apparition scene foreshadowed the slaughter of Macduff’s children.

Quinn Kelsey, as Macbeth, after his turns in Rigoletto and Aida, again proved his value as an ideal Verdi baritone, with a grand, burnished sound, even from top to bottom. Tentative, as he should be, in the terrifying dagger monolog, he gained strength as he grew crazier; his gigantic, center-stage ‘Pietà, rispetto, amore’ was a cry from the soul and ‘Mal per me’, taken from the 1847 score, was that of a wounded animal. Bravo.

All ears were on Lise Davidsen’s Lady Macbeth. The voice is magnificent, generous, huge and appealing, but if one recalls Verdi’s desire for an ugly sound (he was telling only a half truth), able to snarl and express the Lady’s horrific desires, she falls short. Temperamentally cool, and playing for nobility and haughtiness of carriage, it frequently missed the mark, but it was thrilling nonetheless. The text, from the not-loud-enough letter reading in act one, through a general weakness in her chest voice, rarely packed the punch it should. The role’s wicked coloratura, so out of place save in the fake-happy toast, gets in the way of most Lady Macbeths; only Callas (heard on discs) and Scotto could handle it, and the latter was generally overparted. ‘Vieni! T’affretta!’ nonetheless was delivered with a very effective chill; ‘Si colmi il calice,’ the toast at the banquet, was cautious, but with a real trill, and her decision to sing the second verse pianissimo was a nice, psychotic touch. The Sleepwalking Scene was compelling, high D flat and all; the Lady was clearly deeply disturbed.

Ryan Speedo Green, a house favorite, used his beautiful, smooth, bass voice with intelligence, but lacked the potency the character needs. Freddie de Tomassso’s bright, echt-Italian tenor, was most welcome in the first act concertato and, of course, in his patriotic aria later on. Jonathan Burton, a tenor new to me, made us wish the role of Malcolm were bigger. The others in the cast were totally committed and the three Georgian solo dancers cavorting on the banquet table, were exciting in their anachronistic, folk-dance movements (by Jorrell Lawyer-Jefferson).

The glorious Met chorus, always accurate, led by Tilman Michael, shone as snarling witches, guests at the banquet, and refugees, although the latter chorus, taken too slowly by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, flirted with intertia.

Elsewhere, Yanni thrilled, emphasizing the score’s darkness and power - the brass choirs were almost alarming.

Despite a slight disappointment with the otherwise magnificent Davidsen’s vocal interpretation, this is a great addition to the Met’s Verdi catalogue.

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TOPICS: Music/Entertainment
KEYWORDS: macbeth; met; opera

[Miami Rebel]

My wife and I visited New York, saw family and friends, and took in two operas. The famous Franco Zeffirelli production of La Bohème still holds up these four decades after it was introduced, and a fresh, young soprano, Juliana Grigoryan, stole the show. Only 28, she's got the potential for greatness.

The real reason for our visit was to catch the new Macbeth.

The review above is more eloquent than I can be, but I'll just say two things: Quinn Kelsey was amazing and the production ranks as one of the two greatest I've ever seen in my life, the other being the Met's Don Carlo by John Dexter from back in the 80s.

If you're in New York the next week or so (the end of this run,) definitely try seeing it.

[MikelTackNailer]

It’s kind of amusing that an Englishman’s play, written in English, is performed in Italian for the operatic version.

The article didn’t specify but I got that impression.

Pardon my lack of sophistication.

[Sirius Lee]

It’s kind of amusing that an Englishman’s play, written in English, is performed in Italian for the operatic version.

It's better in the original Klingon.

[ConservativeDude]

thank you for this review/post

[ConservativeDude]

thank you for this review/post

[misterdarcey]

Very good. Looking for more classical music posts.

[left that other site]

If you have a Classical Music Ping List, could you please add me?

[Miami Rebel]

Operas took inspiration freely from writers of various nationalities and languages. One of Verdi’s greatest works is Don Carlo, based on a German play about a Spanish prince.

Verdi was a huge champion of Shakespeare. His last two operas were Otello and Falstaff (which was based on The Merry Wives of Windsor and scenes from Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2.) He had wanted to do one based on King Lear but sadly never did.

Here are a couple scenes from the current production:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI9AOvQJZlY&list=RDqI9AOvQJZlY&start_radio=1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGYGOYf_TR4&list=RDNGYGOYf_TR4&start_radio=1

And last, here’s a magnificent singer of bygone years:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfGOdZ3H2Ys

Pietà , rispetto, amore,
Conforto a’dì cadenti,
Ah! non spargeran d’un fiore
La tua canuta età .
Nè sul tuo regio sasso
Sperar soavi accent;
Ah! sol la bestemmia, ahi lasso!
La nenia tua sarà .

Mercy, respect, love,
the comfort of declining years,
these will place no flowers
on your old age.
Nor should you hope
for kind words on your royal tomb:
only curses, alas,
will be your funeral hymn.

[Dr. Sivana]

It’s kind of amusing that an Englishman’s play, written in English, is performed in Italian for the operatic version.

You might also note that the story takes place in Scotland.

For drama, Italian just sings much better than English. You don't go to the opera to get the literary nuances and deep plots of Melville, Austen or Victor Hugo. Emotion and beauty are an important part of it. Italian is better suited for the genre. Classic English literature in Anime is often in Japanese, too. The adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice" for Bollywood was in Hindi.

Shakespeare also translates pretty well, at least the major themes.

[ek_hornbeck]

One of the best takes on a Verdi opera - at least for those who like cinematic adaptations - was Franco Zeffirelli's Othello with Placido Domingo singing the title role. It was staged and recorded as a feature film, with the sets and effects that one would expect from a movie rather than an opera stage.

[ek_hornbeck]

It’s kind of amusing that an Englishman’s play, written in English, is performed in Italian for the operatic version

Verdi's operas also include Othello and Falstaff - with the latter using material from Henry IV and The Merry Wives of Windsor.

I'm more of a Wagner than Verdi person, but I do like Verdi's late operas (which include these Shakespeare-based works) - perhaps because - though I'm sure Verdi would have vehemently denied it - they were his most "Wagnerian".

[MikelTackNailer]

I do know that it’s not over until the fat lady sings.