PERFORMANCES by The Met opera can be seen in Bridport and Dorchester next month.

The Met: Live in HD begins in the new year with two operas brimming with comedy and fantasy, mingled with tragic love: Lehàr’s The Merry Widow and Offenbach’s les Contes d’Hoffmann. Combining the elegance of opera with the pizzazz of Broadway, the two operas, broadcast on Saturday, January 17 and Saturday 31, are directed by Tony Award winning directors Susan Stroman and Bartlett Sher.

Bringing in the New Year, The Merry Widow marks the Met’s debut of director and choreographer Susan Stroman, and features the lavish costumes of William Ivey Long.

Two weeks later, on January 31 The Met: Live in HD’s broadcast of Bartlett Sher’s production of Offenbach’s masterpiece Les Contes d’Hoffmann stars Vittorio Grigolo in the role of the tormented poet, Hoffmann.

Hibla Gerzmava will sing Antonia and Stella, with Erin Morley as Olympia and Kate Lindsey as Nicklausse.

The Merry Widow is at Bridport’s Electric Palace, the arts centre and the Plaza Cinema in Dorchester on January 17 and Les Contes d’Hoffman is at the same venues on January 31.