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The MET at PAC
Written By: Mary Adair Trumbly - Highlands PAC | Issue: December 2023
Highlands Performing Arts Center will screen MET Opera’s passionate opera set on the Amazon on Saturday, December 9.
Inspired by the magical realism of Gabriel García Márquez, Mexican composer Daniel Catán’s 1996 opera tells the enchanting story of a Brazilian opera diva who returns to her homeland to perform at the legendary opera house of Manaus—and to search for her lost lover, who has vanished into the jungle.
The MET premiere stars soprano Ailyn Pérez as Florencia Grimaldi, with Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin on the podium to lead a spellbinding new production by Mary Zimmerman that brings the mysterious and magical realm of the Amazon to the Met stage. A distinguished ensemble of artists portrays the diva’s fellow travelers on the riverboat to Manaus, including soprano Gabriella Reyes as the journalist Rosalba, bass-baritone Greer Grimsley as the ship’s captain, baritone Mattia Olivieri as his enigmatic first mate, tenor Mario Chang as the captain’s nephew Arcadio, and mezzo-soprano Nancy Fabiola Herrera and baritone Michael Chioldi as the feuding couple Paula and Álvaro.
Run time is 2:32, with one intermission. A pre-opera discussion begins at 12:30 P.M. It’ll be staged on the new large cinema screen in the Martin Lipscomb Theater.
The PAC Educational Theatre program will have three workshops in December before transitioning to rehearsals for the full production of the musical Oliver in January. There is still a need for 10-15 older teens and adults to fill character parts. Please call Erik Bishop at (828) 526-9047 for information. Oliver will be performed on the Main Stage April 25-28.
Be on the lookout for new offerings from the National Theatre of London and Great Art on Screen in the weeks to come. And for the start of first-run movies. We are one step closer after having the new screen installed and wired. There are a few more steps to being certified to show the first-run films, but we are getting close!
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