(Credit: Karen Almond / Met Opera)

This week, the Metropolitan Opera is set to present Jake Heggie’s “Moby Dick” for the first time in the company’s history. It is being headlined by Brandon Jovanovich, who is taking on the role of Captain Ahab.

Jovanovich is no stranger to the work as he covered the role of Ahab during its world premiere run. Back then he prepared for the role by reading the classic novel and for his preparation at the Met he went through sections of the book to rediscover the character. He also trained physically for the challenges of the production which meant using an artificial leg throughout the evening.

The results were clear on opening night as OperaWire noted, “Brandon Jovanovich is a force of nature. Every time I’ve seen him at the Met, he has displayed tremendous charisma onstage to go along with a unique combination of vocal ruggedness and elegance I haven’t heard in many singers. Ahab is perhaps the role that best matches his vocal apparatus and he used it to its full potential, delineating a complex character with incredible vocal depth.”

For those not in New York for the performance, the Met will broadcast the opera on its Met radio. Jovanovich will also perform in a new production of “Pénélope” at the Bayersiche Staatsoper and “Parsifal” at the San Francisco Opera. 

Recordings 

For those who want to see more of the American tenor, you can watch him in recordings of “Pagliacci” from the Dutch National Opera, “Die Vogel” from the LA Opera, and “Pique Dame” from the Salzburg Festival.

Here he is as Captain Ahab.