I think the following
The Argument says...
works of Richard Wagner are not used in the list of most frequently performed operas because Wagner's operas are notoriously expensive to perform on stage
but not the case of Wagner's popularity.
The argument will strengthen if we can show that the reason Wagner's operas are not included not because of his lack of popularity but because of expensive to perform on stage.So his popularity is super strong.
E says exact opposite (Apologies for my previous answer)
D wins