August 6-10 at 8pm | repeats at midnight

Monday • Der Rosenkavalier

Richard Strauss' comic masterpiece of love and intrigue stars Renee Fleming as Marschallin and Susan Graham in the trouser-role of her lover.

Tuesday • Ernani

Giuseppe Verdi's opera, based on Victor Hugo's play, stars Angela Meade as noblewoman Elvira with Marcello Giordani as her mismatched lover.

Wednesday • Don Giovanni

Mariusz Kwiecien's youthful and sensual interpretation of Mozart's antihero stars Marina Rebeka, Barbara Frittoli and Ramon Vargas.

Thursday • The Enchanted Island

The lovers from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream are shipwrecked on his other-worldly island of The Tempest. The all-star cast includes Placido Domingo and Joyce DiDonato.

Friday • Faust

Tony Award-winning director Des McAnuff updates Charles Gounod's retelling of the Faust legend to the first half of the 20th century.

Upcoming • Wagner's Ring Cycle: September 10-14 at 9 pm

Great Performances at the Met

Pretty soon, the term "opera" will no longer bring to mind the type of traditional image that evokes the phrase "It ain't over till the fat lady sings." At least if it's up to General Manager Peter Gelb and Music Director James Levine at the Metropolitan Opera. Under their leadership, the Met has bold initiatives to broaden its audience and present modern masterpieces alongside the classic repertory, with highly theatrical productions featuring the greatest opera stars in the world.

One of the world's leading opera companies, the Metropolitan Opera each season stages more than 200 performances, with more than 800,000 people attending and millions watching public television's Great Performances at the Met, plus radio, tours and recordings. Fans no longer have to don formal attire to take in a show, thanks to the latest technologies. Just pull out your tablet or mobile device. Or slip on your sneakers and head to the local cinema for The Met: Live in HD, returning this fall for the 2012-13 season. Plus, kids at school desks get to take it all in, and become the next generation of fans, with the Met's HD Live in Schools national education program.

Local sponsors: Baltimore Symphony Orchestra; Lyric Opera Baltimore; Baltimore County Commission on Arts and Sciences; The Charles Delmar Foundation; Henry and Ruth Blaustein Rosenberg Foundation, Inc.; Hot August Blues.

National sponsors: The National Endowment for the Arts; Irene Diamond Fund and the Philip and Janice Levin Foundation; and Toll Brothers, America's luxury home builder®. The Metropolitan Opera HD Live in Schools is funded by Bank of America and the Metropolitan Opera Guild.