Met Opera 'Damnation' revival becomes concert performances

NEW YORK (AP) - The Metropolitan Opera is scrapping its previously announced revival of Berlioz's "La Damnation de Faust" next season and replacing it with concert performances.

Robert Lepage's production debuted at the Met in 2008, based on a staging seen at the Saito Kinen Festival in Japan and the Paris Opera.

The Met announced in February the staging would return for seven performances from Jan. 25 to Feb. 15 in 2020.

The company made the unusual decision to make a switch after a show had been announced. It said in a statement that unanticipated technical demands forced it to change the production to the more common concert version.

The cast remains the same, including mezzo-soprano Elina Garanca, bass Ildar Abdrazakov, and tenors Bryan Hymel and Michael Spyres sharing the title role.