Monaco's Opera Season Heats Up

The Monte Carlo Opera's season has kicked off in Monaco, and opera buffs are heading to the coast to get their culture.

The opera season runs from January through March, and this year, fans can see recreations of such classics as Verdi's Rigoletto and Strauss' Salome.

Many works debuted here for the first time, such as Richard Wagner's Tristan and Isolde in 1893, and Maurice Ravel's The Child and the Spells in 1925. In all, 45 lyrical works were first produced in Monte-Carlo by some of the world's greatest singers including Melba, Caruso, Chaliapin, Tito Schipa, Georges Thil and the more contemporary Ruggero Raimondi, Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti. Since the 2001 opening of the Grimaldi Forum Monaco, Monte-Carlo's state-of-the-art cultural center, the Monte-Carlo Opera also frequently performs in the forum's Salle des Princes and Salle Prince Pierre auditoriums. The company tours the world when not performing in Monaco.

For more information, visit www.opera.mc.