Monteverdi: Two Classic Operas

Monteverdi s seminal first opera L Orfeo, tells the dramatic story from Ovid s Metamorphoses of the descent of Orfeo (Georg Nigl) into the underworld to recover his beloved wife Euridice (Roberta Invernizzi), seen here in a production for La Scala, based on a painting by Titian and directed by Robert Wilson. David Alden s visually sumptuous production of L incoronazione di Poppea, with its suggestions of a giant game of chess, puts the opera's potent blend of sex and politics in a context that sets ancient against modern just as the action juxtaposes scurrilous comedy and stark drama. Both are filmed in High Definition and recorded in true surround sound.