STAGE TUBE: Sneak Peek at Dress Rehearsal of Verdi's RIGOLETTO

Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer will make his Met debut with a new production of Verdi's Rigoletto, in a staging that moves the opera's tragic events from a decadent 16^th-century Italian court to the glitzy, depraved setting of the Las Vegas strip circa 1960.

Below are two videos from the dress rehearsal:

1. The Duke's aria from Act I of Verdi's "Rigoletto." Piotr Beczala (Duke). Production: Michael Mayer. Conductor: Michele Mariotti. 2012-13 season.

2. Duet from Act I of Verdi's "Rigoletto." Željko Lu?i? (Rigoletto), Diana Damrau (Gilda). Production: Michael Mayer. Conductor: Michele Mariotti. 2012-13 season.

Polish tenor Piotr Beczala sings the Duke, here an amoral lounge singer whose entourage includes the world-weary comedian Rigoletto, sung by Serbian baritone Željko Lu?i?. German soprano Diana Damrau sings the role of the innocent Gilda, Rigoletto's daughter and the victim of the predatory Duke. Slovakian bass Štefan Kocán sings the assassin-for-hire Sparafucile and Belarussian mezzo-sopranoOksana Volkova makes her Met debut as the seductress Maddalena. Italian conductor Michele Mariotti, who made his Met debut earlier this season, conducts his first company performances of the Verdi masterwork.

Mayer's production will also feature the work of debuting artists Christine Jones (set design), Susan Hilferty (costume design), Kevin Adams (lighting design), and Steven Hoggett (choreography). The Saturday, February 16 matinee performance will be transmitted worldwide as part of the Met's Live in HD series, which is now seen in more than 1,900 movie theaters in 64 countries around the world.