The Metropolitan Opera opened its 2026-27 season on September 22 with a new production of Verdi’s Macbeth, directed by Heartbeat Opera co-founder Louisa Proske and conducted by Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin. Quinn Kelsey sings the title role opposite Lise Davidsen as Lady Macbeth, in the Met’s first new staging of the opera since 2007.
Key Takeaways
- Louisa Proske had less than a year to build the production after original director Bartlett Sher withdrew to direct DOLLY: A True Original Musical.
- The new staging replaces Adrian Noble’s 2007 production, which reset the opera in a grim modern-day setting.
- Tenor Freddie De Tommaso sings Macduff and bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green sings Banquo.
- Opening with Verdi breaks a post-pandemic pattern in which the Met launched each season with a contemporary work.
- The 2026-27 season includes 17 productions, the lowest count in a full season since the company moved to Lincoln Center in 1966.
A Heartbeat Opera Co-Founder Takes Over the Met’s Opening Night
The Metropolitan Opera’s choice of director makes this opening night a New York story as much as a Verdi story. Louisa Proske is known to local audiences as a co-founder of Heartbeat Opera, a small company that built its reputation by reimagining classic works for contemporary audiences, often on modest budgets. Before this assignment, she spent four years at Oper Halle in Germany.
The route to the Lincoln Center stage was not planned. Bartlett Sher was originally attached to the production, then stepped away to direct DOLLY: A True Original Musical, the stage project based on the life of Dolly Parton. Proske inherited a season-opening assignment with less than a year of lead time, a compressed schedule for a new production at a house of the Met’s scale.
That shift carries weight beyond one evening. A season opener is the Met’s most visible night of the year, and handing it to a director who came up through New York’s independent opera scene signals that the company is willing to look beyond its usual roster when a vacancy opens.
Lise Davidsen and Quinn Kelsey Lead a Casting-First Production
The Metropolitan Opera built this Macbeth around its two leads. Quinn Kelsey, a baritone with a long track record in Verdi’s major roles, sings the Scottish king. Lise Davidsen, who has become one of the Met’s central artists in recent seasons, takes on Lady Macbeth, the role that drives the opera’s descent into violence and guilt.
OperaWire described Davidsen as the reason the Met chose to open with Verdi’s opera, coming off her run as Isolde in Tristan und Isolde. Freddie De Tommaso as Macduff and Ryan Speedo Green as Banquo complete a cast designed to give Nézet-Séguin strong voices across the score.
Early Reviews Split on the Metropolitan Opera’s Macbeth
Critical response to the Metropolitan Opera’s opener has not settled into consensus. The Classical Review praised the evening’s impassioned singing and atmosphere, noting that the Met’s “The Voice Matters” banner, hung across Lincoln Center, found support on stage. OperaWire was more mixed, singling out Kelsey and the Metropolitan Opera Chorus but calling the overall evening uneven and questioning the balance of intensity between the two leads.
That divide is useful for audiences deciding whether to attend later in the run. A production built in under a year often sharpens over its first performances, and the reviews point to the vocal side, rather than the staging, as the production’s firmest foundation.
Lincoln Center Gala Brings Film and Fashion Names to Opening Night
The Metropolitan Opera’s opening gala framed the performance with a cocktail reception beforehand and a private dinner afterward. Guests in tuxedos and gowns began arriving at the opera house around 5:30 p.m. on what WWD described as the first properly crisp evening of the fall.
Frances McDormand and Joel Coen arrived early, and Patricia Clarkson followed shortly after. Katie Holmes, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Ariana DeBose were also among the guests, continuing the opening night’s role as one of the city’s key crossover events between classical music, film, and fashion.
A Leaner Metropolitan Opera Season Raises the Stakes for Macbeth
The Metropolitan Opera enters 2026-27 with a smaller slate than New York audiences are used to. The company announced 17 productions for the season, including five new stagings, and General Manager Peter Gelb has described extended runs of popular titles as an experiment. Revivals of Tosca, La Bohème, and Aida account for 71 of the season’s 187 performances.
With fewer new productions on the calendar, each one carries more weight. After Macbeth, the Met’s new work includes the world premiere of Missy Mazzoli’s Lincoln in the Bardo in October and a new Richard Jones staging of Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West on New Year’s Eve. Puccini’s catalog continues to reach well beyond the opera house, as shown by a recent release inspired by Puccini’s “Nessun Dorma”, and the Met is betting that familiar titles and strong casting will carry the season.
For the Metropolitan Opera, Macbeth sets the tone. A director drawn from the city’s independent scene, two leads with established Verdi credentials, and a divided critical reception make the production one of the fall’s most discussed cultural events in New York.
FAQs
When Did the Met Opera’s 2026-27 Season Open?
The Metropolitan Opera opened its 2026-27 season on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, with a new production of Verdi’s Macbeth at Lincoln Center.
Who Stars in the Met’s New Macbeth?
Quinn Kelsey sings Macbeth and Lise Davidsen sings Lady Macbeth. Freddie De Tommaso plays Macduff, Ryan Speedo Green plays Banquo, and Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts.
Who Directed the Met Opera’s Macbeth?
Louisa Proske, a co-founder of New York’s Heartbeat Opera, directed the production. She replaced Bartlett Sher, who withdrew to direct DOLLY: A True Original Musical.
How Many Productions Are in the Met’s 2026-27 Season?
The Metropolitan Opera is presenting 17 productions, including five new stagings, its lowest total in a full season since moving to Lincoln Center in 1966.
