Clash of the TITANS!

So Antony and Cleopatra...a brilliant mismatch of composer and librettist if I ever saw one. Barber by nature, as described by Menotti, was "a very intimate and introverted composer." How then could anyone expect a successful union with the grandiose and bombastic Franco Zeffirelli?
From the beginning, it seemed that Barber would be fighting an uphill battle. First with the choices of subject matter, to then trying to find a librettist while avoiding using Menotti, and finally trying to write his music in such a way that it would stretch to meet Zefferelli's grand scenes.
It's interesting to note Barber’s rejection of the Metropolitan’s subject choices seemed to also reflect his preference for a more intimate, refined story. Antony and Cleopatra, while recalling lavish landscapes and scenery, is still centered upon the relationship between two people who happen to live in the lap of luxury in Rome and Egypt.
As we can see in both the original version versus the revisions, it is when we are pulled away from this powerful story that the opera truly suffers. Zeffirelli wanted to give people a show that would rival one of Louis XIV’s parties at Versailles using all the tricks the new stage would put at his disposal. It seemed that management at the Metropolitan backed his view. They wanted to show the world that they were the premiere opera house by giving the most lavish and grandiose party they could. Instead of going out and commissioning a composer like Barber, whose music would be better suited to a more minimal style of production, they could’ve gone and done what was recently done for Renée Fleming: create a gala event with lavish scenes and costumes from all the operas Leontyne Price had been featured. Barber’s opera should have been moved later into the season and done the way he wanted it done. This way, they could pick some of the most popular titles from the repertory, have a fabulous party, everyone could show off their jewels, and they would all live happily ever after.