I love Verdi, but while Simon Boccanegra has several beautiful musical moments such as Orfanella in Tetto Umile, the final scene, Fiesco's big aria and Plebe Patrizi... it is due to the convoluted story such as I agree the decision for Boccanegra and Amelia to keep their father-daughter relationship secret not a favourite as such.
This 2010 Met production is good, helped by some lovely hosting from Renee Fleming, but my least favourite Simon Boccanegra. Again, it's not that it is bad, far from it, I just prefer the 1984, 1995, 1991, 2010(ROH) and especially 1978 productions.
Musically I can't fault it, the orchestra play brilliantly and the conducting is very good too. Nor visually too, the costumes and sets are lavish and picture and sound quality excellent too. Staging is good mostly, particularly in Plebe Patrizi however for my liking the father-daughter duet and the duet between Boccanegra and Fiesco were a little stolid in the staging.
Performances are mostly solid. While I prefer Cappuccilli for beauty of tone, Gobbi for interpretation, Milnes for acting and Chernov for sympathy and tone colour, Placido Domingo sings wonderfully and proves himself to be a magnificent actor. Adriane Pieczonka is a beautifully sung and communicative Amelia, it's somewhat true she is rather matronly, then again Tomowa-Sintow in a way was too and she's my favourite in the role.
Marcello Giordani has an appealing voice, but like a lot of Adornos excepting Michael Sylvester and Domingo himself he's rather bland in the acting. Stephen Gaertner is suitably repellent as Paolo, and James Morris is a mostly solid Fiesco if lacking the sincerity of Plishka, Scandiuzzi, Furlanetto, Christoff, Lloyd and particularly Ghiaurov, and his duet with Domingo doesn't quite have the oomph and emotional resonance it should do.
All in all, good and recommendable but I have seen(and heard) better. 7/10 Bethany Cox