For many, the star countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo’s name is synonymous with that of the pharaoh worshipping the sun without a stitch in Philip Glass’s opera Akhnaten. As incoming general director of the financially troubled Opera Philadelphia, Costanzo now has the biz buzzing over his pay-what-you-like ticketing policy. True, he’s down some dollars at the box office, but he has also virtually presold the whole season, which zeroes out most future marketing costs and should play great with philanthropies. Costanzo opens with the local premiere of Rossini’s Il Viaggio a Reims, wherein Beautiful People from all over Europe rub elbows at a roadside inn on their way to the coronation of Charles X of France (and Navarre!) in 1825. Conceived as a special for that very occasion, Il Viaggio a Reims called for an all-star lineup of nine marquee names—an extravagance Rossini never expected to see duplicated again. Since the score reemerged in the late 20th century, companies have mounted it as a showcase for the spiffiest bel canto warblers they can find. But the opera has also found a home at conservatories as a vehicle for young hopefuls in search of agents and contracts. In that spirit, it’s become a fixture at the annual Rossini Festival in Pesaro, the composer’s birthplace. It’s lighter than air, just the thing for a summer evening. —Matthew Gurewitsch