Source: WTL photograph© on site in Manaus.
Comments: This is Manaus' majestic and monumental Opera House, called the Teatro Amazonas. Construction was begun in 1881, at the height of the rubber boom. The famous Italian tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921) was contracted to sing here, but he left before performing. The first opera performed was Ponchielli's La Gioconda in 1897. It is virtually a European opera house in style outside and inside: columns and banisters (English cast iron); stage curtains, chandeliers, and mirrors (France); marble (Italy); porcelain (Venice). The opera house was renovated in the 1990s.
Humanities Question: After taking a virtual tour on the Brazilian Amazon/Solimões rivers (find them in the online Index), (A) write a short response to the curious context about the existence of this opera house in this particular region; if there is a logical connection between this opera house and this region, what is it? If there is a disconnect, what is it? (Note, to answer this question fully, review Manaus #13, #13a, #13b, #13c, #13d, and #13e, which are embeddeed in #13 and following.)