Shown are cast members of LA Opera’s “Ainadamar.” The show will see its debut performance at the opera house starting April 26 until its last showing May 18. (Courtesy of Marty Sohl)
A fresh lineup of theater productions is budding this spring.
With the new season, theaters will be blossoming with lively revivals, revamped adaptations and new storylines across Los Angeles. From Tony-award winning musicals to emerging directors, this vibrant bundle of productions offers an experience for everyone to enjoy.
“Ainadamar” (LA Opera)
The LA Opera’s stage is set for flamenco, poetry and a look into history.
“Ainadamar” will see its debut performance at the historic opera house starting April 26 until its final showing May 18. With tickets starting around $75, the performance will combine Grammy Award-winning composer Osvaldo Golijov’s vibrant flamenco score with a libretto by playwright David Henry Hwang. LA Opera resident conductor Lina González-Granados will lead the production. A story of art in the face of dictatorship, “Ainadamar” traces the life of poet Federico García Lorca during the budding Spanish Civil War, delivered to the audience in retrospect by his actress muse Margarita Xirgu.
Just as in the opera’s world premiere at the 2003 Tanglewood Music Festival in Massachusetts, “Ainadamar” will be sung entirely in Spanish which the LA Opera production will provide subtitles for in both English and Spanish. In addition, the production will maintain the opera’s unique feature of having a woman perform the male role of Lorca, with Daniela Mack and Ana María Martínez starring as Lorca and Xirgu, respectively. The opera’s title derives from the Arabic word meaning “fountain of tears,” while also referring to a natural spring in Granada – where Lorca, unable to escape fascist Spain, was ultimately executed in 1936.
Despite shedding a tear or many, audiences are sure to enjoy the poignant tale of “Ainadamar.”