Einspring is in the air

American soprano Ailyn Perez made her Royal Opera debut last night on the company’s tour in Japan, singing two-thirds of the role of Violetta when the scheduled soprano, Ermonela Jaho, canceled after a rocky first act. (Jaho herself was a late substitute for the ever more elusive Angela Gheorghiu.) A witness to the performance says, “She was amazing and had grown men weeping at how naturally she inhabited the role.” La Perez will return to the return to the Royal Opera (this time in London) as Violetta and Liu.