Simon Rattle leads 'Pelleas' in Met debut (AP)

The British maestro, his trademark mop of frizzy white hair bobbing enthusiastically above the orchestra pit, led the company in a revival of Debussy's "Pelleas et Melisande" on Friday night.

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Setting an unusually leisurely pace that stretched the performance, including intermissions, to more than four hours, Rattle drew some magnificent playing from the orchestra. The crystalline textures of Debussy's impressionistic score stood out with clarity and precision, and the dramatic tension grew steadily as the opera headed toward its tragic climax. Setting an unusually leisurely pace that stretched the performance, including intermissions, to more than four hours, Rattle drew some magnificent playing from the orchestra. The crystalline textures of Debussy's impressionistic score stood out with clarity and precision, and the dramatic tension grew steadily as the opera headed toward its tragic climax. "Pelleas" is a one-of-a-kind work, adapted by Debussy from a play by Maurice Maeterlinck and written in the composer's style of ever-shifting chromaticism. The elusive score is perfectly suited to the story, a timeless, symbol-laden love triangle about unhappy people trapped in an ominous world of shadow and foreboding.

Simon Rattle leads 'Pelleas' in Met debut (AP)