Arts & Events

El ÚLTIMO SUEÑO DE FRIDA Y DIEGO at San Francisco Opera

Reviewed by James Roy MacBean
Monday June 26, 2023 - 01:20:00 PM

Berkeley-born composer Gabriela Lena Frank’s first opera, El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego, became both the first Spanish-language opera ever performed at SF Opera and the first opera by a woman composer ever done there. That’s heady stuff indeed! You’d think that in writing a review of this opera, critics would take note of these facts. However, Chronicle critic Joshua Kosman never once even mentions these remarkable facts in his June 21 review.

With a libretto by Cuban-born writer Nilo Cruz, El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego (The Last Dream of Frida and Diego) sets forth a fantasy around the tempestuous love affair of Mexican painters Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. Interestingly, the opera takes place on November 2, 1957, on The Day of the Dead (El Dia de los Muertos), three years after Frida Kahlo has died. As this opera opens, Diego Rivera, now aged and seriously ill himself, is seen at a cemetery where Mexican villagers gather to honor their departed loved ones. Diego longingly intones his hope that Frida will return to him on this day when the Mexican dead are popularly thought to return to visit their loved ones. El Último Sueño is conducted by Mexican Roberto Kalb, who is debuting here. -more-


THE BERKELEY ACTIVISTS' CALENDAR, June 25-July 2

Kelly Hammargren, Sustainable Berkeley Coalition
Monday June 26, 2023 - 01:16:00 PM

Worth Noting:

Summer is here with the community picnic, movies in the park and Pride on the Plaza with drag performances.

  • Monday
    • At 2:30 pm the Agenda and Rules Committee meets in the hybrid format to finalize the July 11 City Council meeting and continue discussion on Council legislative process
  • Tuesday
    • At 10 am the Solano BID meets in person.
    • At 6 pm City Council meets in the hybrid format and will vote to finalize the FY 2024 budget.
    • At 6 pm the Zero Waste Commission meets in person.
  • Thursday
    • From 9 am – 4 pm is the Community Picnic at San Pablo Park,
    • From 4 pm – 7 pm is the Pride on Plaza event with music and drag show
  • Friday
    • At 11 am the Civic Arts Grants Subcommittee meets.
    • From 8:40 – 10:30 pm is the movie Minions the rise of Gru at the Strawberry Creek Park.
KPFA – To vote for the local Board of Directors later this summer, if you have not already contributed $25 the deadline is June 30. The local board in turn will select four Directors to serve on the National Board.

The Land Use Calendar of appeals and Council Special Meetings and Worksessions are listed near the end of the Calendar.

Check the City website for late announcements and meetings posted on short notice at: https://berkeleyca.gov/

Directions with links to ZOOM support for activating Closed Captioning and Save Transcript are at the bottom of this calendar.

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