Prince Igor

Live performance from the Metropolitan Opera, March 1, 2014. Absent from the Met stage since 1917, Borodin’s masterwork about an introspective prince’s military campaign against the invading Polovtsians returned in 2014 with a first-rate cast and an astonishing production by Dmitri Tcherniakov. Well worth the wait, the sets feature visually striking projections interlaced with lush flowering fields, and the first act delivers one of opera’s most exciting dance medleys, a portion of which went mainstream in the 1950s when Tony Bennett recorded “Stranger in Paradise.”

Directed by Dmitri Tcherniakov, Gary Halvorson, Prince Igor leans on a strong ensemble — Ildar Abdrazakov, Mikhail Petrenko, Sergey Semishkur — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about music titles of 2014.