NEW YORK – The New York Metropolitan Opera (Met Opera) announced a strikingly contemporary lineup on Wednesday that reflects its search for new audiences with new works that tackle issues of race and the incursion of Spanish for the first time in nearly ‘a century.
The institution, which is trying to modernize to overcome its economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, is offering a repertoire for the 2023-2024 season in which a third of the operas are recent with the aim of attracting “more young and diverse. “, according to a press release.
The season opener will be on September 26 with Jake Heggie’s “Dead Man Walking”, the most popular contemporary work of the past two decades, with a reinterpretation by Ivo van Hove that did not premiere in 2020 due to the suspension of cultural activities due to the pandemic.
Among the novelties is also “X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X”, by Anthony David, on the story of the murdered black activist and with the baritone Will Liverman, who has already triumphed in another opera on themes racials, “Fire Shut Up in My Bones”, also included in the season for its hit.
And one of the star pieces, especially for Spanish-speaking audiences, will be the famous opera “Florencia en el Amazonas”, by Daniel Catán, in the new production by Mary Zimmerman with sopranos Ailyn Pérez and Gabriella Reyes in the central roles.
The selection of six new works is completed by “El Niño”, reinterpreted by director Lileana Blan-Cruz, and the acclaimed “Fire Shut Up in My Bones”, by Terence Blanchard, and “The Hours”, by Kevin Put, which was warmly welcomed by the new generations sought by the institution.
“The future of opera lies in a readjustment between classics and new works with which people can identify,” said Peter Gelb, its principal director, in the note, who assured that they also cover “the needs of opera lovers”. of a lifetime.
In this sense, the program includes classics such as “Carmen”, by Bizet, and “La Forza del Destino”, by Verdi, as well as reissues of other pieces by Verdi such as “Nabucco”; Madame Butterfly by Puccini; “Romeo and Juliet”, by Gounod, and “The Magic Flute”, by Mozart, for the Christmas period.