CT's Warner Theatre Screens Encore of The Met: LIVE IN HD's LA TRAVIATA, Today, 5/26

Today, May 26 at 1pm, the Warner Theatre will present Verdi's La Traviata, an encore presentation from The Met: Live in HD.

Verdi's La Traviata survived a notoriously unsuccessful opening night to become one of the best-loved operas in the repertoire. The title role of the "fallen woman" has captured the imagination of audiences and performers alike with its exhaustible vocal and dramatic possibilities and challenges. Violetta is considered a pinnacle of the soprano repertoire.

Natalie Dessay will put on the red dress in Willy Decker's stunning production, in her first Violetta at the Met. Matthew Polenzani sings Alfredo, Dmitri Hvorostovsky is Germont, and Principal Guest Conductor Fabio Luisi is on the podium.

There will be a complimentary pre-broadcast lecture for opera patrons from 11 to 11:45am.

Tickets for this event are $20, $18 for seniors and students and $10 for children 13 & under. To purchase tickets you can call the Warner box office at 860-489-7180 or go online to www.warnertheatre.org/metopera.htm.

Built by Warner Brothers Studios and opened in 1931 as a movie palace (1,772 seats), the Warner Theatre was described then as "Connecticut's Most Beautiful Theatre." Damaged extensively in a flood, the Warner was slated for demolition in the early 1980s until the non-profit Northwest Connecticut Association for the Arts (NCAA) was founded and purchased the theatre. The Warner reopened as a performing arts center in 1983, and restoration of the main lobbies and auditorium was completed in November 2002. In 2008, the new 50,000 square foot Carole and Ray Neag Performing Arts Center, which houses a 300 seat Studio Theatre, 200 seat restaurant and expansive school for the arts, was completed. Today, the Warner is in operation year-round with more than 160 performances and 100,000 patrons passing through its doors each season. Over 10,000 students, pre K-adult, participate in arts education programs and classes. NCAA's mission is to preserve the Warner Theatre as an historic landmark, enhance its reputation as a center of artistic excellence and a focal point of community involvement, and satisfy the diverse cultural needs of the region. To learn more about the Warner Theatre, visit www.warnertheatre.org.