Boston Lyric Opera (BLO) opens the 2019/20 Season with its first production of Ruggero Leoncavallo's indelible and enduringly popular 1892 Italian opera, PAGLIACCI, running September 27 to October 6, 2019 and starring tenor Rafael Rojas (in BLO's Werther and La Traviata, 1998, and Madama Butterfly, 2000) as Canio, and soprano Lauren Michelle making her company debut as Nedda.

Also starring in the production are Tobias Greenhalgh as Nedda's lover Silvio, Michael Mayes (BLO's 2016 Carmen and 2014 Rigoletto) as Tonio, and BLO Emerging Artist alumnus Omar Najmi (2019's The Handmaid's Tale) who sings Beppe-Harlequin. Music Director David Angus conducts the BLO Orchestra and Brett Hodgdon directs the BLO Chorus.