The Staging of "La Traviata" at the Metropolitan Opera

I never thought I'd ever go to the opera and see this: couch-surfing.

In the Met's newest production of Verdi's "La Traviata," the main character, Violetta, reclines on a red couch while she is held aloft by a barrage of be-suited men and women, in a moment reminiscent of "Hello Dolly" or "Chicago."

In fact, if there is anything that should get you to this opera, it's the droves of men in black suits, their deep, masculine voices singing strongly, ecstatically, in Italian. Is there anything else that as a woman, you can ever want at the theater?

Live in HD: "Das Rheingold"

If you love opera & Star Trek (and maybe Meatloaf), click on the photo!

The world begins with one note: an E flat.

One note and a horizontal, undulating beam of blue light begins "Das Rheingold," the first installment in Richard Wagner's epic "Ring" cycle. The prelude, or "Vorspiel," is my favorite opening piece of music, a gradual accumulation of strings bubbling steadily upwards, reaching a fevered pitch that can then only be reigned by the crystal-clear voices of three mermaids, swimming in mid-air, bubbles coming from their lips.

Confused yet?

Think "Lord of the Rings," but with gods, and devils and people singing in German.