Met Opera: DiDonato Soars in Rossini's "La Donna del Lago"

It is always a special occasion when the Metropolitan Opera stages a premiere and its first production of Rossini's melodious and stirring La Donna del Lago boasts the exquisite Joyce DiDonato in the title role and Juan Diego Florez as the Scottish king who is captivated by her. DiDonato, looking very bonny as the red-haired Ellen Douglas, takes control of the evening from her opening aria, a tender and delicate "O mattutini albori," and by the time of her breathtaking "Tanti affetti" in the gra...