'ARABELLA'
Opening Saturday: In 1860s Vienna, Arabella Waldner's wildly dysfunctional family teeters on the brink of ruin. Dad's a compulsive gambler, Mom's pawned everything to pay fortunetellers, Sis is packaged as a man to save money. In the midst of all this, the beautiful, marriageable Arabella meets her ridiculously rich Mr. Right — and chaos ensues. In Minnesota Opera's first staging of Richard Strauss' romantic comedy, Jacquelyn Wagner is the sage yet passionate Arabella, Elizabeth Futral the trousered Zdenka, Craig Irwin the volatile Mandryka, Michael Christie conducts Strauss' frequently bewitching score. (7:30 p.m. Sat. $20-$200. Ends Nov. 17. Ordway Center, 5th and Washington Streets, St. Paul. 612-333-6669, www.mnopera.org.)
LARRY FUCHSBERG
