Zemlinsky: A Florentine Tragedy

This is one of those typically decadent, fin-de-siècle, sexual-depravity operas that seem to be making a comeback, maybe because we've reached our own fin-de-siecle but have little to offer in the sexual-depravity department. Anyway, here's the plot: married couple is having a slight performance problem, so she looks for entertainment elsewhere. Hubby catches her in the act, murders her boyfriend, and the two find themselves so turned on by the murder that their lust for each other is rekindled. End of opera. What could be more fun than that? The music is luscious, the performance passionate. -- David Hurwitz