Maxfield, They are not opera! Opera stands the test of time and is still enjoyable a couple of centuries later. Opera has stories. Good opera has excellent stories. I don't spend much time with Italian and Viennese fluff (although Turandot and Madame Butterfly are exquisitely poignant). Give me something like The Tsar's Bride or Khovanshchina where you have politics and personal tragedies mixing on the grand scale. Or Tristan and Isolde. Or Boris Gudenov. The Legend of the Invisible City of Kitezh has treachery and redemption as themes. Some people know how to write a love scene! Some people know how to write about revolution and despair. Some people know how to write about politics and betrayal. Lucas knows nothing of this. Carolly