San Francisco
El Ultímo Sueño de Frida y Diego: Iconic Artists for Fashion,Art and Opera
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El Ultímo Sueño de Frida y Diego (2022) by local composer Gabriela Lena Frank is the first-ever San Francisco Opera production by a female composer, and the first ever in Spanish (libretto by Nilo Cruz).The opera tells the story of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera reliving their tumultuous love for 24 hours on El Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) through their paintings, embracing the passion they shared and the pain they inflicted upon one other.
Artists Kahlo and Rivera were and are icons of Mexican arts and culture, magic and realism. This Commonwealth Club panel will focus on the impact of their artistic motivation, clothing, design and the famed murals across the Americas. Their fashion and lifestyles have continued to inspire many in the arts world today, including the costumes in El Ultímo Sueño de Frida y Diego, the incredible co-commissioned production of San Francisco Opera you can see on stage from June 13–30, 2023.
This event was rescheduled from May 17.
This program has 2 types of tickets available: In-person and online-only. Please pre-register to receive a link to the live-stream event.
Safety Protocols for in-person attendance:
- We follow best practices laid out by the CDC and state and local guidelines.
- We strongly recommend vaccination for guests, staff, and volunteers.
- Masks are strongly encouraged while indoors (if you do not have one and would like one, inquire at our front desk for a complimentary mask).
- We reserve the right to require different rules for specific events as necessary.
Our LEED Gold-certified building is designed to cool with outside air, using digitally controlled moveable windows and large ceiling fans. We are deploying additional HEPA filters inside to scrub the air. This is all in addition to increased cleaning of surfaces throughout the building.
We welcome donations made during registration to support the production of our online programming.
An Arts Member-led Forum program. Forums at the Club are organized and run by volunteer programmers who are members of The Commonwealth Club, and they cover a diverse range of topics. Learn more about our Forums.
In Association with San Francisco Opera.
Thanks to Casa Sanchez for its support of the post-program reception.
Main image by Illustrator Brian Stauffer; image provided by SF Opera; Bejarano photo by Christie Hemm Klok; Kazan photo courtesy the artist.
All ticket sales are final and nonrefundable.
The Commonwealth Club of California
110 The Embarcadero
Toni Rembe Rock Auditorium
San Francisco, CA 94105
United States
Eloise Kazan
Costume Designer, El Ultímo Sueño de Frida y Diego
Arleene Correa Valencia
Bay Area Artist
Additional Panelists TBA
Jessica Bejarano
Scholar-in-Residence, San Francisco Opera; Founder and Music Director, San Francisco Philharmonic—Moderator
5 p.m. doors open & check-in
5:30–6:30 p.m. program
6:30 p.m. reception
(all times PDT)
