An entire deck of wild cards—that’s Dmitri Shostakovich’s 1934 opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, revived this season at the Metropolitan Opera. In the Russian provinces, “Lady” Katerina Izmailova is trapped in a loveless marriage and seeks solace with a young field hand. Mayhem and murder ensue. Shostakovich’s score blends rambunctious burlesque and harrowing intensity as the hammer drops on anti-heroine Katerina’s transgressions. Graham Vick’s production double dips on cartoonish commentary but mutes the satire when cosmic despair is confronted. The opera premiered in Leningrad, and was shut down by Soviet authorities soon after. Now it’s part of the international canon, but still a rare and special treat in New York. —Joel Lobenthal