Yesterday, I wrapped up my New York trip with two great performances.

On a rare excursion into the world of theatre I went to the Duke Theatre on 42 Street to see Arin Arbus' production of Shakespeare's Macbeth with John Douglas Thompson and Annika Boras as the evil couple. The intimate, small space of the Duke made for a truly visceral experience. It felt like sitting in the play rather than watching it. Very powerful.

When James Levine, returning from a series of recent cancellations, stepped in the pit yesterday evening the Met audience greeted him with a thunderous ovation, one of the most moving moments in my years of attending performances at the house. The performance that followed did everybody proud, the maestro, the excellent cast (Alan Held as Wozzeck and Waltraud Meier as Marie) and the fabulous Met Orchestra. When I saw Alan Held (coming to the COC as Simone and Gianni Schicchi next season) on stage after the performance he asked: "So, when are we doing this in Toronto?" I would love to take him on. For me, Wozzeck belongs to the very small group of operas that I call the perfect pieces. My last Wozzeck was in Paris in 2008 and I can't wait to do it again.

Fog permitting I will be back in Toronto before noon for the joint concert of the members of the Atelier lyrique from Montreal and our own Ensemble Studio singers, our annual Fine Wine Auction (at Crush Wine Bar, from 6 p.m. tonight) and the first on-stage rehearsal of La Cenerentola.