The Maestro’s Cosí from a motorized wheelchair brought the house down – and that’s before a note was played.

James Levine returned to the Metropolitan opera last night two years after he was forced to withdraw from future performances due to a spinal injury. Minutes before curtain up, the familiar shock of grizzled hair was spotted in the pit making last minute adjustments to his motorized wheelchair and that was enough to generate a wave of rapturous applause and cries of “Bravo” from the packed house. The resilient maestro swiveled around to face his fans and the ensuing standing ovation from audience and orchestra alike lasted several minutes.

The ensuing performance of Mozart’s Cosí fan tutte was praised, particularly the orchestra who many said had rarely sounded better. Soprano Susanna Phillips was admired as Fiordiligi with equal praise going to mezzo Isabel Leonard as her sister Dorabella. Tenor Matthew Polenzani was described as “breathtaking” for his Un’aura amorosa, his pianissimo passages being singled out for comment. Danielle de Niese, described by the new York Times as “a young Australian soprano”, went down a storm as Despina.

Levine’s comeback crowns a career at the Met stretching back over 40 years to...