The Met: Live in HD

(See postscript on "The Enchanted Island" below.)

Maybe you're not sure about opera. Maybe you've seen some opera, but haven't particularly liked it. Either way, you owe it to yourself to check out one of the shows in this series. And if you like opera, you'll love "The Met: Live in HD Series."

These productions of New York's Metropolitan Opera are broadcast in high definition at Century Theaters locally (and at hundreds of other theaters throughout the U.S. and the world). I'm so excited about them for a lot of reasons. The sound quality is excellent. The visuals are great: brilliant camera work gives you a better experience than you could get watching the production live at the opera house. Costumes and sets are wonderfully creative. For the most part, the staging (often including dancing) is eye-popping. And there is a backstory: interviews of performers, director, etc. during intermissions. And you get all of this for about $24.

Be warned, though. Most of these productions sell out, so think about getting tickets early. The doors open an hour before show time. That's important to know because people start lining up long before the doors open. It's a persuasive indicator of how good these productions really are.

I just saw "The Enchanted Island" and was completely blown away. It combines Shakespeare's stories of "The Tempest" and "A Midsummer Night's Dream" into a brilliant English libretto married to a masterfully connected potpourri of Baroque music by Handel, Vivaldi and others. The quality of every detail -- singing, acting, costumes, set -- was top-notch. The visual effects were stunning, and besides moments of great passion, there was a liberal dose of humor and whimsy. I've seen a lot of Met productions that I've liked over the past three years, but this is my favorite.