Tonight the Metropolitan Opera launches another of its recent efforts to reach new audiences within the US and abroad: a free weekly audio stream of a performance live from the house's stage.

Beginning with Verdi's Rigoletto this evening at 8 pm, the Met will provide — for free — a live streaming audio feed of one performance a week at www.metopera.org (click on "Watch & Listen").

Among the highlights of this fall's free weekly audio streams are Juan Diego Flуrez, Diana Damrau and Peter Mattei in Il barbiere di Siviglia (Nov. 10); the closing night of this season's acclaimed production of Madama Butterfly (Nov. 18); Anna Netrebko and Rolando Villazуn in La Bohиme (Dec. 5); and the world premiere of Tan Dun's The First Emperor, starring Plбcido Domingo (Dec. 21).

The complete schedule of free webcasts for the rest of 2006 is below; all times are US Eastern.

Wed., Oct. 25, 8 pm - Verdi: Rigoletto
     (Siurina, Calleja, Pons, Burchuladze; Haider)

Mon., Oct. 30, 8 pm - Mascagni: Cavalleria rusticana / Leoncavallo: I pagliacci
     (Guleghina, Farina, Maestri, Racette, Licitra, Croft; Armiliato)

Fri., Nov. 10, 8 pm - Rossini: Il barbiere di Siviglia
     (Damrau, Flуrez, Mattei, Ramey; Benini)

Sat., Nov. 18, 8 pm - Puccini: Madama Butterfly
     (Gallardo-Domвs, Zifchak, Giordani, Croft; Levine)

Sat., Nov. 25, 8 pm - Puccini: Tosca
      (Millo, Fraccaro, Morris; Luisotti)

Wed., Nov. 29, 8 pm - Mozart: Idomeneo
     (Rцschmann, Deshorties, Kozenб, van Rensburg; Levine)

Tues., Dec. 5, 8 pm - Puccini: La Bohиme
     (Netrebko, Villazуn, Glanville, Coleman-Wright; Domingo [cond.])

Mon., Dec. 11, 7 pm - Verdi: Don Carlo
      (Racette, Borodina, Botha, Hvorostovsky, Pape, Ramey; Levine)

Thurs., Dec. 21, 8 pm - Tan Dun: The First Emperor
     (Futral, DeYoung, Mentzer, Domingo, Groves; Tan Dun)

Wed., Dec. 27, 8 pm - Bellini: I puritani
     (Netrebko, Cutler, Vasallo, Relyea; Summers)