Two women share their story through the opera

By Abigail Tejada |A&E Editor|

Captivating culture and language, the Music Department outdid themselves by taking us back to the early 1900’s and gave us a better insight into the life of Frida Kahlo and the fictional character Maria de Buenos Aires.

“Concerto Suite from Frida” depicts the life of Frida.

Frida is well-known for her tough life and her powerful paintings.

The paintings portrayed her burdens at the time. After an accident, Frida was unable to have children, which led to multiple miscarriages and abortions.

The audience experienced a wide range of emotions, ranging from love and passion to sorrow and pain.

Hazel Morales gracefully played the role of Frida. She sung with such charisma.

The passion in her voice was very appealing to the audience and gave their performance extra pizzazz

Her emotions were electrifying. You felt the pain she felt when she found out she had a miscarriage

While the Opera was going on, her artwork was displayed on the screen in the background.

Her paintings were very vibrant and rich in color.

“As someone who knows a lot about Frida Kahlo, it was amazing to see her portrayed so accurately. The music made me feel as if I was in Latin America,” said attendee Jordan Thompson.

“The only thing that I can complain about is, at times, the visuals were too distracting from the performers,” Thompson continued.

Towards the end of this part of the opera, she would express her unorthodox relationship with Diego Rivera.

They were both unfaithful to each other, sleeping with multiple partners.

Additionally, Kahlo experimented with her sexuality, as some of her partners were female. In the opera, it was mentioned that Diego’s female-like breasts attracted her to him.

“Hazel Morales did a great job portraying Frida; Everything was artistically well done,” said attendee Christina Voltz.

“The only thing I wish that would have been done differently is adding more characters to the opera,” continued Voltz.

“I do not understand Spanish very well, which left me confused as to what was going on during Maria de Buenos Aires. However, the singing was amazing and the dancers were great,” said Thompson.

Maria de Buenos Aires is a Tango Opera that centers on a prostitute in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The second half takes place after Maria’s death.

Her body is condemned to death, but her shadow is allowed to wander the streets of Buenos Aires.

In one of the last scenes, it was stated on the screen, “She has been implanted with the symbols of motherhood.”

When she gave birth, it was described as the birth of all births. The last scene left the other characters confused as to who the child was. This left me wanting to know more.

Even though Maria de Buenos Aires was in Spanish, there was a projection that showed a brief summary of what was going on in each scene in English. This was very helpful for the English speakers.

The wardrobe for both Kahlo and Maria de Buenos Aires were exactly what I had imagined. Previously hearing the story of Maria de Buenos Aires, I had imagined her wearing a red sheer dress with a slip, and this is exactly what she wore.

Overall, both operas were impeccable. The performers had so much energy and passion, which successfully transitioned to their dancing and singing.