Once you’ve listened to about 15 or 20 minutes of Pelléas et Mélisande I’m afraid you’ve heard the whole thing. Besides that, the story is just dumb. I’ve always respected Debussy, but this opera really was just a waste of my time, and I hate having my time wasted.

The production I watched didn’t help anything. I’ve never seen a filmed production where the singers/actors actually just stand there most of the time. Not to mention the complete lack of any scenery and minimal props : it was filmed in what looked like a European ballroom with a table and a few chairs.

The leads sang well though.