Met Premiere of
Jake Heggie’s
Acclaimed Opera Moby-Dick

to Open Second Half of Season on March 3

 

Brandon Jovanovich stars as Captain Ahab, joined by cast including Stephen Costello,

Peter Mattei, Ryan Speedo Green, Janai Brugger, William Burden, and Malcolm MacKenzie

 

Director Leonard Foglia makes his Met debut;

Karen Kamensek Conducts

 

A scene from Jake Heggie's "Moby-Dick." Photo: Karen Almond / Dallas Opera

New York, NY (January 16, 2025)—Following last season’s Met premiere of his first opera, Dead Man Walking, composer Jake Heggie returns to the company with his acclaimed adaptation of Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick. With a libretto by Gene Scheer, Moby-Dick arrives at the Met in its original staging directed by Leonard Foglia, in his Met debut. Moby-Dick—one of the most performed new operas of the 21st century—has its Met premiere on Monday, March 3.

 

Under the direction of conductor Karen Kamensek, an all-star cast comes together on the decks of the whaling ship Pequod. Tenor Brandon Jovanovich stars as the monomaniacal Captain Ahab; tenor Stephen Costello returns to the Met stage for the second time this season as Greenhorn, a role he originated in the 2010 world-premiere production; baritone Peter Mattei sings the role of Starbuck and returns later this season as Jochanaan in the new production of Strauss’s Salome; and bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green is the Polynesian harpooneer Queequeg, having made appearances this season in Verdi’s Il Trovatore and Strauss’s Die Frau ohne Schatten.

 

The cast also features soprano Janai Brugger as Pip, tenor William Burden as Flask, and baritone Malcolm MacKenzie as Stubb.

 

Along with Foglia, the creative team includes set designer Robert Brill, costume designer Jane Greenwood, and projection designer Elaine J. McCarthy. Lighting designer Gavan Swift and movement director Keturah Stickann both make their Met debuts with this production.

 

After its premiere on March 3, Moby-Dick will have seven additional performances, running through March 29. 

 

 

A scene from Jake Heggie's "Moby-Dick." Photo: Karen Almond / Dallas Opera

 

Moby-Dick Broadcasts on Radio and Online

The March 11 and 29 performances of Moby-Dick will be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on the SiriusXM app, and audio from the March 11 performance will also be streamed live on the Met’s website. Audio from the March 29 performance will also be broadcast over The Robert K. Johnson Foundation–Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network.

 

Public Programs and Special Events

Conversation with Gene Scheer, Leonard Foglia, and Sheridan Hay

Thursday, February 20, 7PM

The Center for Fiction

 

The Metropolitan Opera returns to Brooklyn’s Center for Fiction to discuss how Herman Melville’s great American novel Moby-Dick made its way onto the operatic stage. Librettist Gene Scheer, director Leonard Foglia, and author and resident instructor of the Center for Fiction’s Moby-Dick reading group Sheridan Hay come together for a deep dive into both the opera and the novel. The evening will also feature a performance from the opera and will be available to livestream. Registration required, click here. Free with code MetOpera2025.

 

 

A scene from Jake Heggie's "Moby-Dick." Photo: Karen Almond / Dallas Opera

 

LIVE from NYPL: Moby-Dick from Sea to Stage
Wednesday, February 26, 7PM
Celeste Bartos Forum at the New York Public Library

 

The Met returns to LIVE from NYPL for an evening of performance and discussion with writers and members of the creative team of Moby-Dick. The New York Public Library’s Manuscripts and Archives Division holds an unparalleled repository of literary manuscripts and correspondence by and about Melville. The event will also be available to livestream. Tickets are free. Registration is required, opening in mid-January. Click here to register.

 

Toll Rush Tickets

The Met Opera app is now available for download on mobile devices, offering users a new way to purchase Toll Rush Tickets via an automated lottery. Lotteries open two weeks prior to a performance, and winners are notified the day before the performance. Learn more about the Met Opera app here.

 

For More Information

For further details on Moby-Dick, including casting by date, please click here.

 

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A scene from Jake Heggie's "Moby-Dick." Photo: Karen Almond / Dallas Opera

 

Moby-Dick

Music by Jake Heggie

Libretto by Gene Scheer

Based on the book by Herman Melville

 

Monday, March 3, 8PM

Saturday, March 8, 8PM

Tuesday, March 11, 7PM

Saturday, March 15, 8PM

Wednesday, March 19, 7:30PM

Saturday, March 22, 8PM

Tuesday, March 25, 7:30PM

Saturday, March 29, 1PM

A scene from Jake Heggie's "Moby-Dick." Photo: Karen Almond / Dallas Opera

 

Conductor	Karen Kamensek
Production	Leonard Foglia*
Set Designer	Robert Brill
Costume Designer	Jane Greenwood
Lighting Designer	Gavan Swift*
Projection Designer	Elaine J. McCarthy
Movement Director	Keturah Stickann*
Pip	Janai Brugger
Captain Ahab	Brandon Jovanovich
Greenhorn	Stephen Costello
Flask	William Burden
Starbuck	Peter Mattei
Stubb	Malcolm MacKenzie
Queequeg	Ryan Speedo Green
*Debut

 

Production a gift of C. Graham Berwind, III and The Eugene McDermott Foundation 

Additional support from Gordon P. Getty and Franci Neely

Moby-Dick is part of the Neubauer Family Foundation New Works Initiative

Production co-owned by The Dallas Opera, State Opera of South Australia, Calgary Opera, San Diego Opera, and San Francisco Opera

 

For prices and ticket information, please call 212.362.6000 or visit metopera.org. Special rates for groups of ten or more are available by calling 212.341.5410 or visiting metopera.org/groups.