With the flickering of a candle, love sparks. Two hands meet in the dark and four friends' lives are changed forever. Opera Australia is delighted to welcome back to Arts Centre Melbourne, one of its most popular productions and one of the world’s all-time favourite operas, Puccini’s La Bohème.

Celebrated Italian maestro Pietro Rizzo makes his Melbourne debut, leading a world-class cast featuring Latvian soprano Maija Kovalevska who will bring her poignancy and grace to the role of Mimì. Alongside her will be acclaimed Korean tenor Yosep Kang in the role of the somewhat naïve Rodolfo, much loved Australian soprano Jane Ede as Musetta and Melbourne local, booming baritone Christopher Tonkin reprises his role of Marcello.

This glittering production is set in the chaos of street fairs and burlesque bars of 1930’s Berlin, providing the perfect setting for the heart-wrenching love story, filled with the familiar arias of Puccini’s most famous opera.

Some human emotions are too big for words alone, and for that, we have music. La Bohème exposes your soul to the feelings that only music can express.

This production is a must see; perfect for those wanting to experience opera for the first time and for aficionados, this is a chance to see why both Maija Kovalevska and Yosep Kang have received rave reviews around the world.