Opera: Verdi’s Nabucco
Nabucco follows the plight of the Jews as they are assaulted, conquered and subsequently exiled from their homeland by the Babylonians. The Metropolitan Opera production conducted by James Levine features Juan Pons, Samuel Ramey and Maria Guleghina. “Va, Pensiero,” the song of the Hebrew slaves, has become the national anthem for all who are homesick for the countries they’ve left behind. (2001, sung in Italian with English subtitles, 150 minutes.)