This weekend, the Boulder Opera Company is bringing two of Puccini's most splashy works — “Il Tabarro” and “Gianni Schicchi” — to the stage at the Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. Audiences can experience the best of both worlds in a single evening with one agonizingly poignant tragedy and one delightfully mischievous comedy.

“The Puccini Double Bill,” as the Boulder Opera Company is dubbing it, runs at the Dairy at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $25-$50 and can be purchased at thedairy.org. According to stage director Gene Roberts, the weekend bill is the perfect way for newcomers to experience opera.