The Metropolitan Opera’s 2025-26 season of Saturday matinee broadcasts continues on May 9 with a delightful performance from last fall: Donizetti's comedy "La Fille du Régiment" – "The Daughter of the Regiment."
It stars soprano Erin Morley in the virtuosic title role of the tomboy Marie, who was raised by a regiment of French soldiers. Tenor Lawrence Brownlee plays the Swiss villager Tonio, who demonstrates his love for Marie by joining the regiment – and singing an aria full of high Cs. The cast also features beloved mezzo-soprano Susan Graham as Marie's long-lost relative, the Marquise of Berkenfield, and bass-baritone Peter Kálmán as one of Marie's regimental papas, Sergeant Sulpice. In addition, acclaimed actress Sandra Oh makes a cameo appearance in the speaking role of the imperious Duchess of Krakenthorp. Maestro Giacomo Sagripanti conducts the Met Orchestra and Chorus in Donizetti’s exhilarating score.
Listen to the broadcast of "La Fille du Régiment" on Classical IPR at 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 9, 2026.
Read the synopsis from the Metropolitan Opera.
From the Met: "This frothy comedy mixes humor with a rush of buoyant melody and notorious vocal challenges. The story concerns a young orphan girl raised by an army regiment as their mascot and begins at the moment of her first stirrings of love. Complications (and comedy) ensue when her true identity is discovered. The action is startlingly simple and unencumbered by intricate subplots, allowing the full charm of the characters and their virtuosic music to come across in an uninhibited way."
Composer: Gaetano Donizetti
Libretto: Georges Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges, Jean-François Bayard
CAST
Tonio: Lawrence Brownlee
Marquise of Berkenfield: Susan Graham
Sgt. Sulpice: Peter Kálmán
Duchess of Krakenthorp: Sandra Oh
