Blame it on Ernesto! Smitten with a delightful though impoverished young widow named Norina, he has refused to marry the socially correct lady that his aged but strong willed uncle (Pasquale) has so obligingly selected for him. To retaliate for this gross insubordination, Pasquale not only casts him from the house, but in order to guarantee that his ungrateful nephew will inherit none of his ample fortune, he decides on the simple but drastic step of getting married himself. Little does he know what he's stepping into. The stage is set for a comic clash of wills, invigorated by some of Donizetti's most intoxicating music, that leads to a happy ending for all concerned. Phil Lowery directs.