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Medea is the very personification of the phrase 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'. Even by Greek myth standards, this is a gruesome tale where jealousy and vengeance collide with truly appalling results. We're in Corinth, 1200 BCE, and Jason (Giasone) is about to be married to Glauce. Medea is not pleased: she and Jason have quite a backstory. With the help of Medea's magic, Jason had seized the Golden Fleece and to make sure he got away with it, Medea killed and dismembered her brother, and then killed King Pelias so that Jason could take his throne. She is also the mother of Jason's children. Now she's determined to stop Jason's wedding: she sends a poisoned robe and crown to Glauce, which duly do their job. Finally, desperately, to teach Jason a lesson, there is one more terrible act of self-destructive vengeance when Medea brutally murders their two children.

Dating from the end of the 18th century, Luigi Cherubini's music – by turns fury-filled and movingly beautiful, elegant and tranquil – triumphantly meets the demands of this exacting drama. The title role has been a favourite of divas down the ages, perhaps most famously Maria Callas. Tonight, soprano Sondra Radvanovsky leads a starry cast, with the Met forces conducted by Carlo Rizzi.

Presented by Debra Lew Harder with commentator Ira Siff.

Medea ..... Sondra Radvanovsky (soprano)
Glauce ..... Janai Brugger (soprano)
Neris ..... Ekaterina Gubanova (soprano)
Giasone ..... Matthew Polenzani (tenor)
Creonte ..... Michele Pertusi (bass)
First Lady ..... Brittany Renee (soprano)
Second Lady ..... Sarah Larsen (mezzo-soprano)
Leader of the King's Guards ..... Christopher Job (bass-baritone)
Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra
Conductor Carlo Rizzi