"Florencia en el Amazonas: Spanish Opera Returns to the Met after a Century"
The Metropolitan Opera premiered Daniel Catán's "Florencia en el Amazonas," making it the company's first work by a Latin American composer and the first Spanish-language opera in nearly a century. The opera, set in the Amazon rainforest, pays tribute to opera itself with lush, tonal music reminiscent of earlier eras. While lacking in vivid characterization and compelling drama, the production features a strong performance by soprano Ailyn Pérez in the title role. The opera's brevity and polished score, conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, are notable, but the overall experience feels encased in nostalgia and lacks the galvanic musical developments of the past century.