Soprano Angel Blue performs during Giuseppe Verdi's 'Aida' at New York's Metropolitan Opera. Photo: AFP
Aida has long epitomised opera at its most extravagant - think sweeping sets, luxurious costumes and even real-live horses, an experience intended to transfix the audience with grandeur.
A beloved version of that scale helmed the Met for more than three decades - so staging a new production of Aida, a tale of love, war and loyalty set in ancient Egypt, was a tall order.
