(Photos: Jill Steinberg)

Paola Prestini (composer, librettist and orchestrator), Magos Herrera (composer, librettist and Sor Juana), and Louisa Proske (director) transformed the Met Cloisters for their world premiere processional opera, “Primero Sueño,” for a sold out audience on January 26th, 2025. OperaWire’s initial introduction to a collaboration piece by Prestini and Herrera, “Con Alma,” made this premiere feel extra exciting and revolutionary in ways that opera as an art form continues to evolve and expand into an all encompassing, multi-layered body of art.

“Primero Sueño’s” intimate approach in telling Sor Juana’s story through the perspective of Prestini, Herrera, and Proske unlocked the intuitive power behind every word, gesture, and articulation of emotion thought possible. This work is everything dreamed and imagined, produced and performed with utmost care, consciousness and soul. “Primero Sueño” lights the way forward for all.

Setting the Tone

The Met Cloisters museum is situated in one of the most beautiful spots along the Hudson River, overlooking the Englewood Cliffs. In the spring and summer especially, people and wildlife flock to the Heather Gardens, nestled in Fort Tryon. One can enjoy a picnic on the lawn just outside of the Cloisters and observe the intimate surroundings of nature’s pure beauty. For me, this is “holy” ground. A sanctuary to steal away from the chaos of our world and settle into what makes one feel balanced again. I have spent a lot of personal time in this area and at this museum, so reviewing an opera in this setting resonates deeply with me.

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz‘s story is also very close to my heart. This revolutionary woman ushered in new ways of thinking, writing, speaking, living and being. Her life inspires one to realize their soul’s purpose. “Primero Sueño” embodies Sor Juana’s wild curiosity, evoking consciousness as true power that can only be derived from one’s inner volition and self-realization.

On the night of production, I arrived to the museum and was greeted by the warm staff members. I must also note the Acknowledgement plaque at the entrance hall of the Cloisters which reads: “The Metropolitan Museum of Art is situated in Lenapehoking, homeland of the Lenape diaspora and historically a gathering and trading place for many diverse Native peoples, who continue to live and work on this island.” There is also a bronze Acknowledgement plaque located at the The Met Fifth Avenue’s facade.

I was handed a program and invited to choose a tarot card by a guide, designed by David Herrera with concept and text by Louisa Proske. I pulled a tarot card from the deck and examined its captivating image. The front of the card displayed an ethereal body suspended in stars, rising up towards a ball of light. The body had a “light body” floating above it. The text on the card read:

“III The Dream Journey: The night rises, The body sleeps, Sor Juana dreams.”

“Dream journeys: The soul detaches from the body, floats away. Meets dead ancestors, travels to a spirit world, experiences revelation. The soul of Sor Juana soars towards absolute knowledge but it fails. She wakes up.”

I was informed that my card’s meaning would be revealed to me at some point in the opera, so I tucked it into the back of my program and began to dive into the program’s synopsis, describing every room the procession would lead us through: Room One (Pontaut Chapter House, Interlude: Sewing Song and Weeping Song), Room Two (Saint-Guilhem Cloister, Procession: Santa Maria and Walking Song), Room Three (Early Gothic Hall), Room Four (Fuentidueña Chapel, Interlude: Despair, Phaeton, Coda: Waking).

The detailed synopsis and tarot card laid out the groundwork for what I might expect conceptually, but what stood out the most to me was the nuanced, high-level of care and thoughtfulness made present from the moment I entered the space. Already, I felt part of the “body.” I looked around and saw others reading their tarot cards and examining the space. The tall ceiling of the Cloister’s Romanesque Hall above us reverberated our voices and resonated with what the Cloisters was built for – a house of spiritual objects.

Production & Musical Details, Room One: Pontaut Chapter House

“Primero Sueño” is a processional opera and as an audience member there were moments where I was so immersed in the atmosphere I completely forgot to question what room we would be guided into next. I think what the creative team did best in preparation for the audience to feel safe and vulnerable enough to allow guides to lead them into the next space begins with providing enough guides, a total of six, who organized their placement down to the second, in order to pull it off. I think it necessary to mention this fact because I felt the guides also kept the pace of the opera’s movement and timing exact with the maneuvering of the audience as a body. Never once was there a moment where I felt separate from the music or drama. If anything, I felt exactly where I wanted to be and able to see and hear everyone around me. And this is a first for me to say about any opera experience.

The detailed planning of everyone involved with this production spoke volumes. The guides mentioned are Chira Bell, Caspian Fernholz, Ria Ipa, Julia MacGoy, Ciera Miller, and Cole Vaughan.

The very first room the audience was guided into, Room One: Pontaut Chapter House, began with a portal of singers ushering us through their veil of singing at the entrance of the Cloister’s Langon Chapel and ultimately into the Pontaut Chapel House. In the middle of the Chapel House was Magos Herrera as Sor Juana playing her harmonium. The soft drones coming from her instrument made it feel like she had been there for centuries, waiting for us to join her. The audience was seated around her and on the main wall was a soft projection glowing. I was so interested in observing Herrera and how she was playing her harmonium that all else faded away around me.

The Sjaella (Sisters) that surrounded Sor Juana included sopranos Viola Blache, Franziska Eberhardt, Marie Fenske, mezzo-soprano Marie Charlotte Seidel, and altos Felicitas Erben and Helene Erben. The women looked on as Sor Juana wrote her poem, “Primero Sueño.” The program highlights the details of Sor Juana’s life at this point and how she is destined to “strive for knowledge that is considered inappropriate for a woman.”

Magos Herrera sings and the women join her in alternating harmonies of soulful resonance. Prestini’s compositions for the voice are a personal favorite of mine. “Sewing Song” and “Weeping Song” blended seamlessly with the intimate atmosphere of the Cloisters. I felt like I was in a dream. Prestini’s music lead us further into the otherworldly spirit world of Sor Juana’s innermost existence. Very rarely do opera productions get to this point as quickly and gracefully as this one did for me. My heart was on the same page of Sor Juana’s feelings based on her existence in a dark world ruled by man, in her time an Archbishop. Her greatest desire was for consciousness and her soul driven journey to be her guide. In this first room, it became quite obvious how her tapping into infinite intelligence can transcend worlds of any kind. My imagination felt seen, heard and reflected back to me as I sat among other audience members enveloped in the gentleness of Room One.

The guides lead us into the outer area of the Cuxa Cloister, to the side of this area were speakers playing Magos Herrera’s voice as she talked about Sor Juana’s daily life as a woman. This felt like a memoriam and I wanted more time to spend soaking in the vastness of the dimly lit space with just her voice speaking. For me, this might have been the most unexpected and inspiring surprise of the production. It was pleasantly unusual to bear witness to it and made me wonder what a sound installation of this opera would be like at another time in the Cloisters so that visitors could experience this who may not have made it to a performance.

Room Two: Saint-Guilhem Cloister

My fondest memory of the Saint-Guilhem Cloister is from the Met’s “Heavenly Bodies” Alexander McQueen exhibit. His masterpieces suspended above the fountain, almost touching the skylight glass like a tower of dreams, remains to be one of the most remarkable displays I can remember. The entire exhibit was a revolutionary use of the Cloisters as a whole.

“Primero Sueño” opened my eyes to how the space as a sound board for a historical vocal performance is also just as impactful. The moments when the women moved their bodies and positioned their voices in layering tones for “Santa Maria” and “Walking Song” felt organic and natural. The veil of their voices that welcomed us in the beginning had not been broken. There was an increasing sense of camaraderie unfurling.

There was also an intricate display of projections by designer Jorge Cousineau that blended well in this space. The choreography by Jorrell Lawyer-Jefferson added to the intimacy and illuminated the closeness of the women as a body. The costumes could also be seen very clearly in this room. Costume designers and contributors include Andrea Lauer, Kari Love, Daniel Johnston, Camille Charara, Jasmine Lewis, Pintler Costumes and Technologies, and TNA Pattern Services. The materials added depth and detail in their delivery as well.

The guides led us out of the Saint-Guilhem Cloister area and around the opposite side of the Cuxa Cloister (the side closest to the Late Gothic Hall and Boppard Room). In the corner of the Cuxa Cloister (next to the Boppard Room and Unicorn Tapestries Room) appeared “an indigenous deity: Queztalcoatl.” Jorrell Lawyer-Jefferson as Quetzcoatl was stunning! His costume was complete with a head dress that brought him to life in full color. His dance and movements were specific to the nature of his indigenous tradition. This was an extraordinary moment of live art happening in real time.

Room Three: Early Gothic Hall

Sor Juana’s journey continued as the guides brought us to her as she prayed to the Virgin Mary in the Early Gothic Hall. The production became very technical from this point forward because of the exact timing the Sisters had to choreograph Sor Juana’s falling asleep and ascending her soul. At one point, the Sisters held a white sheet over Sor Juana’s body as she laid asleep and used the compact projector located in the costume of one of the sisters to project Sor Juana’s body in ascension. The white sheet moved with her breath and the projection floated above her on the sheet. The concept of this moment felt experimental and fearless in the best way possible.

Here is a creative team unafraid to test out handmade costume designs that function as “part of the body” to display a projection. This felt like a major celebration in a lot of ways, especially considering how many operas I’ve experienced that used projections and technology to “entertain” the audience during the experience. “Primero Sueño’s” artistic combination of technology and costume design embodied the performers and carried into the audience as part of this body, not as a separate entity. This was a whole, heartfelt design that took lots of risks and inspired one to consider new ways for technology to be present in opera productions. Bravo!

Room Four: Fuentidueña Chapel

The Fuentidueña Chapel is located next to the Saint-Guilhem Chapel and can seat an audience around the walls of its interior. There is also plenty of space on the wall above the entrance to make the most of projections. The lighting is also perfect in this larger area and lighting designer Jiyoun Chang along with assistant lighting designer Kayo Tokuue, did an excellent job with the display. The projections were designed by Jorge Cousineau and depicted a magnificent pyramid, along with sculpture animation by David Herrera. Room Four was the finale to the entire production and it left no stone unturned for how to make the most of this space.

In the synopsis, Sor Juana’s soul soars in space. “She begins to ascend the pyramid of light…But in trying to see everything, she sees nothing.” This was a turning point of creation to destruction and how the beauty of all that is, is all that remains. Magos Herrera’s voice brought tears to my eyes in this final room. There was a sense of urgency, longing, transcending that translated through her voice and made me connect more to the opera. I say this especially because there was a chance this final room with every performer participating might come across as overwhelming, however, the production became a celebration for everyone to enjoy. I observed audience members clapping their hands, tapping their feet, eyes unmoved in admiration of the beautiful dancing and singing. I also clearly saw the handmade sculptures by David Herrera as they became part of the production, carried by Jorrell Lawyer-Jefferson.

“Coda: Waking” is when Sor Juana is pulled away from her dream and she writes the last line of the poem: “The world illuminates, and I awake.” The music reflected this awakening and I loved experiencing Luca Tarantino (theorbo and Spanish guitar) and Celso Duarte (harps, charango, and hand percussion) live and close up. The smiles on every person’s face in this room is what I will remember most. “Primero Sueño” reminded me of the joy that is the resistance to the darkness that always pervades, calling upon the witness to keep watch and know that a greater light is coming.

Sound designer Christian Frederickson’s work was the foundation for this production’s balance and fine tuning efforts that absolutely made this opera sound as natural as possible through amplification. Textile artist Paloma Domínguez and props master Joyce Lai did beautiful work for this production, along with production manager Alberto Ruiz, stage manager Peter Nictakis, assistant stage manager Mya Piccione, equity, belonging, and understanding facilitator Chira Bell and creative producer Ras Dia.

“Primero Sueño” was developed at Casa Opera (San Miguel de Allende, Mexico) with production support by Magos Herrera, and rehearsed at National Sawdust in Brooklyn, NY. The VisionIntoArt (VIA) staff, advisory council, VIA Impact Lab Fellows for “Primero Sueño,” MetLiveArts program, and further support also made this historical work possible. Congratulations to all!