Will Dua Lipa attend the opening of “Lincoln in the Bardo” at the Metropolitan Opera?

During a speech at the Denyce Graves Foundation Harvest Moon Gala, General Manager Peter Gelb hinted that the Grammy-winning pop star with 88 million followers is “excited” about the premiere of the new opera and could bring a camera crew. Of course, Gelb may have said it in jest and may have been to referring to the pop star attending the Teatro alla Scala’s opening of “La Traviata” earlier in September.

That said, Dua Lipa did interview author George Saunders on her podcast Service95 in 2024 about the book “Lincoln in the Brdo” and raved about the book saying that she recommends every George Saunders book and that she is a huge fan of his.  

“Lincoln in the Bardo” is based on George Saunders’s Booker Prize-winning novel and features music by American composer Missy Mazzoli and a libretto by Royce Vavrek.

The supernatural story takes place in the “bardo,” a transitional plane between the end of this life and the beginning of the next, populated by those who resist all the powers of light and darkness and refuse to accept their fates. The action revolves around 11-year-old Willie, recently deceased son of Abraham Lincoln, whose grief-stricken visits to Willie’s tomb prevent his son’s spirit from moving on.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts a cast that includes baritone Peter Mattei, soprano Christine Goerke, mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe, and countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo.