San Francisco’s acclaimed Merola Opera Program will present the first opera commissioned in the Program’s 62-year history, the world premiere of "If I Were You" by distinguished American composer Jake Heggie and noted librettist Gene Scheer. Opera on the Couch provides a forum where psychoanalytic insights deepen the meaning and experience of opera. Our discussion of "If I Were You" will occur immediately after the show on Sunday, August 4, when the immediate visceral experience of music, drama and spectacle will enliven a fuller and deeper understanding of the emotional and psychological aspects of the work .