A series of cancellations resulted in an unusual triple bill: a rare Spanish opera, an impromptu concert by Plácido Domingo and Woody Allen's brilliant Gianni Schicchi.
Claude Debussy’s only opera, Pelléas et Mélisande, calls for a spring in a forest, scenes in a palace, a well in a park and a scene in the palace vaults. Ever since its premiere in 1902, it has been a difficult work to stage, and indeed to appreciate. Its complex symbolism, impressionistic music and lack of any memorable melodies were not a good recipe for a runaway hit.
