Last summer, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and VisionIntoArt announced that they would produce Paola Prestini and Magos Herrera’s “Primero Sueño” in 2025. The work is now set for its world premiere showcases this January.

The adaptation of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz’ iconic poem of the same name will open on Jan. 23-26, 2025 at The Met Cloisters.

“Primero Sueño” was first published in 1692 and “tracks Sor Juana’s mind as it aggregates knowledge, following the soul as it dreams and wakes. She fights for her intellect and curiosity and shares her insights on mysticism, feminism, and the power of the natural world. Within those moments, she touches on her relationship to nativism of the time, from images of sun to Darwinistic principles to elements of transcendence.”

Prestini joined forces with jazz icon Magos Herrera in the creation of the work. Herrera will play Sor Juana and will be joined by Sjaella as both nuns and several of the poem’s vivid images. She is joined by Ensemble Sjaella. The production will be directed by Louisa Proske with choreographer by Jorrell Lawyer-Jefferson. Andrea Lauer will design the costumes which will include wearable audio tech devices produced in collaboration with Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab.