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The Metropolitan Opera
~ presents~
a LIVE IN HD simulcast of
CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS
Samson et Dalila
October 20th at 2pm
at the
When mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča and tenor Roberto Alagna joined forces for a new production of Carmen at the Met, the results were electrifying. Now this star duo reunites for another sensual French opera when they open the season in the title roles of Saint-Saëns’s biblical epic Samson et Dalila. Darko Tresnjak, who won a Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical in 2014 for A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, makes his Met debut directing a vivid, seductive staging, featuring a monumental setting for the last-act Temple of Dagon, where the hero crushes his Philistine enemies. Sir Mark Elder conducts the first new Met production of the work in 20 years.
SYNOPSIS
ACT I Gaza, 1150 BCE.
The enslaved Israelites accuse God of breaking the Holy Covenant. Samson exhorts them to bless God’s name. Abimélech mocks the captives for trusting in a god who is powerless compared to the great Philistine god Dagon. Samson rouses the Israelites to revolt, before striking down Abimélech. The High Priest of Dagon enters and curses the race of Israel and their leader. As dawn breaks, Dalila and a group of Philistine maidens enter with flowers. Seeking to revive a past love, she urges Samson to follow her to her home.
ACT II
Dalila anxiously awaits Samson’s arrival. The high priest appears. He promises wealth as a reward for Samson’s capture, but she rejects the offer scornfully and says that all she seeks is revenge. Samson arrives. Dalila pleads with him not to resist her love. Samson finally reaffirms that he still loves her. Dalila commands that he must reveal the secret of his God-given strength. Ultimately, Samson gives in to her. Philistine soldiers enter. Dalila calls for them, and Samson cries out that he has been betrayed.
ACT III
Stripped of his power, Samson turns a mill wheel in a dungeon in Gaza. He prays that God may spare his people and punish him alone. At dawn, the Philistines revive their worship of Dagon. The high priest mocks the fallen hero, and Dalila reminds Samson of their night of passion. Samson prays to God and, with his strength restored, brings the temple crashing down.
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