Clark Art Airs 'Florencia En El Amazonas'

Print Story | Email Story
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Metropolitan Opera's broadcast production of "Florencia en el Amazonas" airs at the Clark Art Institute on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 12:55 pm in the latest installment of the 2023–24 season of The Met: Live in HD. 
 
The award-winning series of live, high-definition cinema simulcasts features the full live performance along with backstage interviews and commentary. The Clark broadcasts the opera in its auditorium, located in the Manton Research Center.
 
According to a press release:
 
Sung in Spanish and 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 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.
 
In conjunction with the broadcast, the Clark's Manton Study Center for Works on Paper hosts a special pop-up exhibition. The exhibition includes a sampling of prints, drawings, and photographs inspired by the show's various themes, from female opera divas to the transformative power of love and storms. The pop-up exhibition is free and on view from 11 am to 1 pm on Dec. 9.
 
Tickets $25 ($22 members, $18 students, $5 children 15 and under). Advance registration encouraged; capacity is limited. To purchase tickets, visit clarkart.edu/events or call the box office at 413 458 0524. No refunds. 

Tags: Clark Art,   

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Menorah Lighting Begins 8 Days of Hanukkah, Thoughts of Gratitude

By Tammy Daniels iBerkshires Staff

Rebecca Wax gets some helping light as she works the controls. The full ceremony can be seen on iBerkshires' Facebook page
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — With a boost from her dad, Rebecca Wax on Wednesday turned on the first candle of the more than 12-foot tall menorah at the Williams Inn. 
 
Around 40 people attended the community lighting for the first night of Hanukkah, which fell this year on the same day as Christmas. They gathered in the snow around the glowing blue electric menorah even as the temperature hovered around 12 degrees.
 
"We had a small but dedicated group in North Adams, so this is unbelievable," said Rabbi Rachel Barenblat of Congregation Beth Israel in North Adams. "This is honestly unbelievable."
 
Barenblat had earlier observed the lighting of the city's menorah in City Hall, which the mayor opened briefly for the ceremony. 
 
In Williamstown, Rabbi Seth Wax, the Jewish chaplain at Williams College, with his daughters Mia and Rebecca, spoke of the reasons for celebrating Hanukkah, sometimes referred to as the Festival of Lights. 
 
The two common ones, he said, are to mark the single unit of sacred olive oil that lasted eight days during the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem and the military victory over the invading Greeks.
 
"For the rabbis of antiquity, who created and shaped Judaism, these two events were considered to be miracles," said Wax. "They happened not because of what humans did on their own, but because of what something beyond them, what they called God, did on their behalf.
 
View Full Story

More Williamstown Stories