The Met: Live in HD to livestream ‘El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego’ May 30

The Metropolitan Opera closes its 2025-26 Live in HD season with American composer Gabriela Lena Frank’s first opera, “El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego.” 

Sung in Spanish with subtitles, this vibrant new production unfolds on the Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) in 1957, three years after Frida Kahlo’s death. Now aging and burdened by grief, Diego Rivera longs for one final moment with Frida, the love of his life. In Mictlán, the Aztec underworld, Frida has finally found peace, free from the physical pain, sickness and heartbreak that shaped her earthly existence. However, La Catrina, Keeper of the Dead, insists she must accompany Diego as he nears the end of his life. Urging Frida to return to the land of the living — not just for Diego, but for herself, her art and the chance to paint once more, unburdened by pain — Frida reluctantly agrees to return for 24 hours, bound by one rule: She cannot touch the living. What follows is a poignant reunion between two artists bound by a connection that transcends their time together.  

This magical-realist portrait of Mexico’s painterly power couple is fashioned as a reversal of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth where Frida leaves the underworld to reunite with Diego. Beyond the immortal romance, “El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego” is an endearing illustration of the Mexican culture and spirituality that was foundational to these two artists. The opera honors their art and the rituals of remembrance that connect the living with the dead. 

Three-time Grammy Award–winning mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard stars as Frida, following her Met role debut in the title role of Bizet’s “Carmen” and baritone Carlos Álvarez co-stars as Diego. The cast also features soprano Gabriella Reyes as Catrina, mistress of the underworld and countertenor Nils Wanderer as Leonardo.  

The story of this famously feuding pair, who briefly relive their tumultuous love, is directed and choreographed by Deborah Colker with Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conducting. 

Following the opera, exclusive behind-the-scenes content and cast interviews will be shown.  

Doors open at 10:30 a.m. May 30, and the opera starts at 11 a.m. at the Whitefish Performing Arts Center, 127 Spokane Ave., Whitefish. The approximate runtime is two hours and 50 minutes with one intermission.