Opera Program.

Mario Berini, an opera singer known for his interpretation of dramatic tenor roles, died on Monday at Beth Israel Hospital. He was 80 and lived in Manhattan. His wife, Anna Lee, said he had been ill for some time. Mr. Berini sang Cavaradossi in "Tosca" in February 1944 in the first opera performance at City Center. Two years later he made his debut with the Metropolitan Opera, taking over the title role in "Faust" with just nine hours' notice when the scheduled tenor, Raoul Jobin, became ill. In his two seasons with the Met he appeared as Don Jose in "Carmen," Dimitri in "Boris Godunov" and other roles. He sang Rodolfo in "La Boheme" and the title role in "Tales of Hoffmann" with other companies, and also appeared on Broadway in 1946 in Ben Hecht's play "A Flag Is Born." Mr. Berini was born in Russia and grew up in California. He made his New York debut in 1940 with the San Carlo Opera Company and later sang with major opera companies and orchestras in the United States. He also sang at Radio City Music Hall and on radio and television. In the early 1950s, one of his vocal cords was severed during surgery for the removal of a node. With his singing career over, he turned to teaching. Among his students were the soprano Helen Donath and the cabaret singer Pia Zadora. In addition to his wife, he is survived by a sister, Lynn Holzman of Los Angeles, and a brother, Alan Edwards of San Francisco.