The Metropolitan Opera 18/19: Samson et Dalila

Tony Award-winning director Darko Tresnjak gives Saint-Saëns’s biblical epic its first new Met production in twenty years. Blessed with immense physical strength, Hebrew leader Samson is sworn to defend his people and his faith from the Philistines.

Though his body is strong, his heart is tender, though. When the Philistine Dalila sets out to seduce him, he is powerless to resist. The beautiful aria “Mon coeur s’ouvre à ta voix ” marks the climax of his seduction—and his betrayal. He reveals to Dalila the secret of his strength, and immediately, his fate is sealed. Imprisoned, blinded, and humiliated, how can Samson atone for his folly? Soprano Elīna Garanča and tenor Roberto Alagna sing the title roles, with Sir Mark Elder conducting.