It’s a safe bet that when Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna are scheduled to sing, the married couple will produce theatrics back stage as well as during the performance. It certainly turned out that way at the Met’s January 10th HD telecast of Giacomo Puccini’s La Rondine. Minutes before the opera was about to start, General Manager Peter Gelb made an announcement that Ms. Gheorghiu was suffering from a very bad cold, but not wanting to disappoint her fans, she would sing. As for Mr. Alagna, his reviews had revealed he was not up to par vocally either. Regardless of the situation, both singers always make a dashing and very exciting couple on stage.

When the curtain went up, Ms. Gheorghiu was standing a few steps up, leaning against a side wall, looking gorgeous and ready to go. Besides evidence of a little dry mouth, the soprano seemed to be in good shape. The satellite, however, lost the sound during Rene Fleming’s back stage interview with the couple, but judging from their body language, the fervent smiles on their faces, and the length of the interview, Gheorghiu and Alagna appeared not to have had a care about their vocal state. What a remarkable recovery!

On the stage, the couple certainly gave their all, supported by Marco Armiliato’s first-rate conducting. It’s good to note, La Rondine will probably not have such a beautifully produced staging as this one again. Ezio Frigerio’s sets and Franca Squarciapino’s costumes from the 1920′s were lavish, but tasteful and true to the period. Nicholas Joël as the overall producer gave Puccini’s version of Viennese operetta every opportunity to impress, especially since the work does not feature any memorable arias, except for the exquisite Ch’il bel sogno di Doretta. Next, Marius Brenciu as Prunier the lovelorn poet and Lisette Oropesa as Magda’s maid Lisette, gave their vocal and dramatic best which contributed enormously in making this production such wonderful entertainment.

But it was Gheorghiu and Alagna who provided the operatic fireworks and considering the ovation they received at the curtain calls, this duo knows how to give opera lovers something to remember and talk about. Critics may not appreciate their carryings-on, but the public certainly recognizes that their histrionics satisfy a deep craving for drama in the operatic psyche.

Although Puccini used a lighter musical style for La Rondine, he certainly has enough of a lyrical and harmonic base to keep the story moving. Magda, who is the mistress of a rich man, meets Ruggero from the country. Not knowing anything about her past, Ruggero writes his family that he wants to marry Magda. Naturally, she knows that their relationship would not survive in his simple rural life and breaks off the affair. The fact that he lets her go without a fight and her quick decision to leave doesn’t present much of an opportunity for Puccini’s pathos to rise to the surface. But Gheorghiu and Alagna’s artistic commitment took hold of what drama there is and ran with it. The result was one of the most fulfilling afternoons spent at the Met.

Magda is a great fit for Gheorghiu. The soprano looked stunning in her costumes, and she imbued her character with great feeling. She never missed a vocal or dramatic opportunity to connect with the audience, an operatic quality easily wished for, but very hard to achieve. Alagna, whose natural demeanor didn’t always project Ruggero’s apparent innocence, gives an exciting interpretation of the young student’s internal turmoil in the opera’s finale. If the tenor’s voice lacked the robust quality needed for the role, he certainly made up for it in the finale. In fact, the duo hit such an extraordinary level of expressing heartbreak, it seemed to spill over the footlights into the audience as a devastating event in real time. The Met, no doubt, has a best selling DVD of La Rondine in its future.

Peggy Erhardt-Gray also contributed to this article.