Indulge with us in an incomparable feast of the senses as we travel through the elegant salons of 19th-century Paris during Mardi Gras to the dusty heat of rural Sicily on the back of a carnival wagon, and back to Paris’ freezing garrets on Christmas Eve.

The hottest party girl in town is hiding a terrible secret. The love that could save her life is threatened by the demands of a furious father who insists on a devastating sacrifice. Alexander Dumas, fils’, semi-autobiographical story and Giuseppe Verdi’s timeless score will alternately lift your spirits and break your heart.

Canio’s not clowning around. When he catches his cheating wife Nedda, only the start of the troupe’s performance can stay his hand … but not for long. Leoncavallo’s gritty and gorgeous score culminates in one of the most famous and tragic tenor arias of all time: “Vesti la giubba,” the original “Tears of a Clown.”

In the garrets of Paris’ 19th century Latin Quarter, a crazy cadre of starving artists, young friends and lovers live, love, make art, and make their marks as Puccini’s divinely romantic score memorably illustrates the joys, struggles, loves, quarrels, triumphs, and tragedies of the true vie de bohème.