Naked Opera at its finest

Vivaldi's 1723 opera  Ercole su'l Termodonte  was first performed in 1723, then more or less forgotten until a revival of the opera in the 2006 Spoleto Festival in Italy.

The sets and costumes were as simple as they were unforgettable:

For most of his time on stage American tenor Zachary Stains wears little more than a rather bare lion skin.

Sexy costumes, sexy sets.  Hercules' soldiers wear tunics that don't hide much, especially when they're seen from the side.

Zachary Stains gives everything to the role of Hercules.  Rather like a Greek statue come to life.

The Amazons have one breast bared, as history records.

Another scene.

The queen's costume leaves little to the imagination.

The story graphically depicts one of the seven labors of Hercules.  The DVD is available from Amazon.Com, and is two hours and thirteen minutes well spent.