Pittsburgh Opera Takes a Journey with ‘Florencia en el Amazonas’; Fruit Bats Play Club Cafe (Tues., 11/12/19)

‘Florencia en al Amazonas’ includes (front, L to R) baritone Nathan Gunn as Alvaro, mezzo-soprano Sandra Piques Eddy as Paula, and soprano Alexandra Loutsion as Florencia. Spreading wings behind them is baritone Craig Verm as the mystical Riolobo. (photo: David Bachman Photography for Pittsburgh Opera)

1) The Spanish language has long been spoken worldwide, and it is rich in literature, drama, and song. Yet while Spanish speakers may enjoy European-style opera, they’ve created very little. Operas written and sung in Spanish are so rare that most of those produced at major houses tend to come from a single recent source, the Mexican composer Daniel Catán, who died in 2011. Pittsburgh Opera presents Catán’s Florencia en el Amazonas. His lush score is tuned to a libretto by Marcela Fuentes-Berain, which includes dreamlike elements of magical realism. The story concerns (of all things) an opera singer taking a cruise down the Amazon. When the ship encounters strange events, complications ensue. Pittsburgh Opera’s cast has soprano Alexandra Loutsion as Florencia. Baritone Craig Verm, fresh from the title role in the company’s Don Giovanni, is the ship’s mate and narrator Riolobo in Florencia en el Amazonas. Performances continue through November 17. Benedum Center, 237 7th St., Cultural District. (MV)

2) The folk-rock group Fruit Bats began as a solo project by Eric D. Johnson in 1997. The project had morphed into a full band by 2001. “Humbug Mountain Song” is a popular single by the Fruit Bats, Johnson later performed with the indie-rock group The Shins, then dissolved the Fruit Bats band, went solo as EDJ, and then rebooted the Fruit Bats. Their latest is 2019’s Gold Past Life and their show at Club Cafe is sold out. Skyway Man opens. 8 p.m. 56 S. 12th St., South Side. (CM)

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