Once you catch the Handel bug it’s hard to pick favorites, but it’s hard to top Semele, which revolves around a Grecian princess who overplays her hand with Jupiter. The score is chockablock with hits, including “Where’er you walk,” “Iris, hence away,” and the heroine’s showstopper “Myself I shall adore.” James Darrah, whose L.A. edge is catching on far beyond the West Coast, directs. Gary Thor Wedow conducts. Amanda Forsythe has the scintillating title role but should expect stiff competition from Alek Shrader as the philandering Olympian, in a jam though way above the law, and Daniela Mack as Juno, a hawk-eyed avenger. —M.G.