The next opera you're going to see

[Amfortas]

The RING in Bayreuth!!!

That's so cool! Be sure to film it for us! Just tell them you're from Opera Lively.

[DasNino]

even tho I like opera I didn't have a chance to see one live in ages, actually ever since I was in elementary school, so something like 12 or 13 lol (I am 27 now) BUT I am finally going to see two operas in two weeks, in Stuttgart. Tosca and I Puritani!!! I can hardly wait! Yes i am going alone, but screw it, it's better so cuz no one is going to see me cry at the end of tosca )

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

even tho I like opera I didn't have a chance to see one live in ages, actually ever since I was in elementary school, so something like 12 or 13 lol (I am 27 now) BUT I am finally going to see two operas in two weeks, in Stuttgart. Tosca and I Puritani!!! I can hardly wait! Yes i am going alone, but screw it, it's better so cuz no one is going to see me cry at the end of tosca )

Hope you have a great time!

[Soave_Fanciulla]

even tho I like opera I didn't have a chance to see one live in ages, actually ever since I was in elementary school, so something like 12 or 13 lol (I am 27 now) BUT I am finally going to see two operas in two weeks, in Stuttgart. Tosca and I Puritani!!! I can hardly wait! Yes i am going alone, but screw it, it's better so cuz no one is going to see me cry at the end of tosca )

I often go alone to the opera because it's hard to find enthusiasts among friends here. Luckily I can always share things on this lovely forum!

[Dichteurehalle]

I often go alone to the opera because it's hard to find enthusiasts among friends here. Luckily I can always share things on this lovely forum!

Do you know, compared to the average experience with a friend, I actually prefer going alone? There are some people I've met through opera, and going with them is always fantastic. But a lot of my friends are sort of new to opera, and I've found that compared to the average stranger I end up seated next to, they're less practiced at sitting still for 4 hours and more prone to fidgeting and loudly adjusting their clothes.

And sometimes they say the most extraordinary things during intermission! During the second intermission of one of the recent Onegins, my friend and his wife just would not stop talking about how the production's choice of duel weapons was entirely wrong and how ridiculous it would be to try and shoot somebody 20 feet away with a rifle. Like, this is what you want to talk about right now?? This is what struck you the most about what we just saw?!

On the other hand, the average stranger is super fun to chat with during intermission. They highly recommend the 2006 Glyndebourne Giulio Cesare; they discuss their favorite versions of Don Carlo(s); they talk about their favorite Donizetti operas; they describe their favorite opera houses in Italy; they tell me their favorite singers are Placido, Pretty Yende, and Stephen Costello (kind of a weird list, no?); they explain how important Pushkin is to Russians; they tell me I should definitely listen to some Meyerbeer; and the list goes on, they are fantastic!

Admittedly, some of them end up wanting to fight me because I'm not a fan of Kristine Opolais, Eric Owens, or Diana Damrau, but that's pretty fun too.

[Luiz Gazzola (Almaviva)]

Do you know, compared to the average experience with a friend, I actually prefer going alone? There are some people I've met through opera, and going with them is always fantastic. But a lot of my friends are sort of new to opera, and I've found that compared to the average stranger I end up seated next to, they're less practiced at sitting still for 4 hours and more prone to fidgeting and loudly adjusting their clothes.

And sometimes they say the most extraordinary things during intermission! During the second intermission of one of the recent Onegins, my friend and his wife just would not stop talking about how the production's choice of duel weapons was entirely wrong and how ridiculous it would be to try and shoot somebody 20 feet away with a rifle. Like, this is what you want to talk about right now?? This is what struck you the most about what we just saw?!

On the other hand, the average stranger is super fun to chat with during intermission. They highly recommend the 2006 Glyndebourne Giulio Cesare; they discuss their favorite versions of Don Carlo(s); they talk about their favorite Donizetti operas; they describe their favorite opera houses in Italy; they tell me their favorite singers are Placido, Pretty Yende, and Stephen Costello (kind of a weird list, no?); they explain how important Pushkin is to Russians; they tell me I should definitely listen to some Meyerbeer; and the list goes on, they are fantastic!

Admittedly, some of them end up wanting to fight me because I'm not a fan of Kristine Opolais, Eric Owens, or Diana Damrau, but that's pretty fun too.

Delightful post. True. One of these days I took a novice friend to the opera, and oh boy, what a mistake! He couldn't sit still and was bored to death. On the other hand, one of the best seat neighbor experiences ever was a couple of years ago when I went to the Met by myself, and sat next to a whole Italian family. They were huge opera lovers and traveled to New York City as a sort of peregrination to the Met - they had heard of it for so long and had never had an opportunity to visit. Grandfather, grandmother, couple of parents, and their young (10-year-old) daughter; and the young lady was as excited about being at the Met as the adults. Great conversation, and they were thrilled with what they called their good luck of sitting next to someone who spoke Italian (they didn't speak a word of English - well, my Italian is not great but I can manage) so that they were able to exchange views about opera in Italy and in the United States.

About half of the time, I go to the opera with my wife. Even thought the Countess is not as huge an opera fan as I am, she is knowledgeable and sensitive, and understands music actually better than I do (she was trained as a classic pianist for some 12 years, although later she abandoned it). So, when I'm with her, it is great, because she issues some very sharp opinions, and she is always spot-on regarding the quality of the singers (or lack thereof).

But the thing is, when I go with her, I don't really chat with anybody. I'm too busy chatting with my dear wife. We talk about several aspects of the performance, during the intermission; I'm curious to know what she thought of this and that, and vice-versa. We rarely turn to others when we are analyzing the performance.

She always only goes with me half of the time. She says that what I do - four days in New York, four operas (and on occasion, 5, when it includes a Saturday and I get the matinee too) - is too much for her, because she also wants to visit friends, go see or do something else (a concert, a ballet, a show, a nice restaurant with friends - we went to school in New York and have numerous friends there), so she usually goes to two of the operas, and I go to the other two by myself - and that's when I actually chat with seat neighbors.

Now, my son got this very nice live-in girlfriend (we love her), and her mother is a huge opera lover! Last time, she went with us, and that was really lots of fun. Next time, we are planning to go with her again.

This is kind of a new thing for us, given that in spite of our best efforts, almost all local friends don't like opera (which is one of the reasons why I created this website).

I have precisely two non-Opera Lively friends who like opera. One in New York - but he has two young children, a baby and a toddler, and it has been harder for him to go with us - and one here in North Carolina. All my other friends don't like opera.

I've been to the opera with six Opera Lively members over the years... Other than these six people and my wife (who actually is also a member here but posts very, very rarely, so she'd be the seventh one - and now my son's prospective mother-in-law - and the two other friends, that makes a grand total of 10 people I've been to the opera with, and are not strangers. I mean, I'm counting only people who like opera, because I tried several times to introduce opera to other friends, but was never really successful. They tend to go once for the sake of being polite; like you said it doesn't go so well, and they don't come back.

Oh wait, I did take my daughter and her husband to the opera and they seem to have liked it. Make it 12, then. I took my son too but he didn't like it, so he can't add to the number. His girlfriend does seem to like it to a certain degree. 13, then.

But this kind of company is rather the rare exception. Of all these 13 people I've mentioned, only one (the guy with the toddler and the baby) lives in New York City. So, routinely, it's either going with my wife, or by myself.

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

I often go alone to the opera because it's hard to find enthusiasts among friends here. Luckily I can always share things on this lovely forum!

Applies to me too.

Do you know, compared to the average experience with a friend, I actually prefer going alone? There are some people I've met through opera, and going with them is always fantastic. But a lot of my friends are sort of new to opera, and I've found that compared to the average stranger I end up seated next to, they're less practiced at sitting still for 4 hours and more prone to fidgeting and loudly adjusting their clothes.

And sometimes they say the most extraordinary things during intermission! During the second intermission of one of the recent Onegins, my friend and his wife just would not stop talking about how the production's choice of duel weapons was entirely wrong and how ridiculous it would be to try and shoot somebody 20 feet away with a rifle. Like, this is what you want to talk about right now?? This is what struck you the most about what we just saw?!

On the other hand, the average stranger is super fun to chat with during intermission. They highly recommend the 2006 Glyndebourne Giulio Cesare; they discuss their favorite versions of Don Carlo(s); they talk about their favorite Donizetti operas; they describe their favorite opera houses in Italy; they tell me their favorite singers are Placido, Pretty Yende, and Stephen Costello (kind of a weird list, no?); they explain how important Pushkin is to Russians; they tell me I should definitely listen to some Meyerbeer; and the list goes on, they are fantastic!

Admittedly, some of them end up wanting to fight me because I'm not a fan of Kristine Opolais, Eric Owens, or Diana Damrau, but that's pretty fun too.

Great post. I have a couple of friends who adore opera and I enjoy their company but most of the time I go alone.

[Festat]

A couple of times I have seated beside strangers that play the air baton and discreetly conduct the whole thing from their seats.

[Luiz Gazzola (Almaviva)]

A couple of times I have seated beside strangers that play the air baton and discreetly conduct the whole thing from their seats.

Oh, I've been known to being guilty of the same although I try my best not to do it. Sometimes it is hard when it is a score I know well and love. The best thing is if I happen to be in a box all by myself, then I can air conduct at will. I usually don't like box seats since I dislike the side view and how we miss one side of the sets, but that's the advantage - no restrictions, if the box is otherwise empty.

[MAuer]

I still remember the intermission conversation of a couple seated behind me at a 2003 Chicago Lyric Opera performance of La Traviata with der Jonas as Alfredo. They were evidently discussing my favorite tenor, and the woman compared him to Bocelli. The guy (her husband, I suspect) nearly exploded: "BOCELLI! Bocelli doesn't have a voice like that!" She clarified her comments by explaining she meant a physical resemblance between the two. The gentleman's response was a tepid, "Well, maybe . . . " I was tempted to turn around and inform her that Bocelli wasn't as good-looking as der Jonas, either.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

I still remember the intermission conversation of a couple seated behind me at a 2003 Chicago Lyric Opera performance of La Traviata with der Jonas as Alfredo. They were evidently discussing my favorite tenor, and the woman compared him to Bocelli. The guy (her husband, I suspect) nearly exploded: "BOCELLI! Bocelli doesn't have a voice like that!" She clarified her comments by explaining she meant a physical resemblance between the two. The gentleman's response was a tepid, "Well, maybe . . . " I was tempted to turn around and inform her that Bocelli wasn't as good-looking as der Jonas, either.

NO resemblance in any shape, way or form. Bocelli, OMG.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Just booked our tickets to see Fra Diavolo at Opera di Roma in October with my girls.

CAST
FRA DIAVOLO JOHN OSBORN
LORD ROCBURG ROBERTO DE CANDIA
LADY PAMELA SONIA GANASSI
LORENZO GIORGIO MISSERI
ZERLINA PRETTY YENDE

Now let's hope no sciopero of any description!

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

Just booked our tickets to see Fra Diavolo at Opera di Roma in October with my girls.

CAST
FRA DIAVOLO JOHN OSBORN
LORD ROCBURG ROBERTO DE CANDIA
LADY PAMELA SONIA GANASSI
LORENZO GIORGIO MISSERI
ZERLINA PRETTY YENDE

Now let's hope no sciopero of any description!

Will keep my fingers crossed for you. Pretty Yende was Adina in the L'elisir I saw recently and I really liked her.

[MAuer]

The opening performance of Robert Xavier Rodriguez’s Frida at the Cincinnati Opera is coming up this Friday, and the company’s General and Artistic Directors have sent an email message to those of us who have purchased tickets cautioning us about the work’s R-rated content. I’m guessing the “sexuality, nudity, and drug references” will upset audiences as little as did the romantic encounters between a pair of gay lovers in last year’s production of Fellow Travelers. Anyone who has any familiarity with Frida Kahlo’s life will know the woman wasn’t exactly a nun, and will simply view the opera’s action as a reflection of her personality. But the CO’s management is acting responsibly and making sure no one is taken by surprise.
This made me wonder how many operas that are repertoire standards today should have included audience warnings when they had their world premieres. Die Walküre surely had to be one of them, and probably Tannhäuser and Tristan und Isolde, as well. We know La Traviata was frowned upon for making a heroine of a courtesan, and I suspect the tale of the “fallen woman” Manon didn’t receive the warmest reception, either. Tosca, with its torture and attempted rape, definitely would have needed a warning.

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

The opening performance of Robert Xavier Rodriguez’s Frida at the Cincinnati Opera is coming up this Friday, and the company’s General and Artistic Directors have sent an email message to those of us who have purchased tickets cautioning us about the work’s R-rated content. I’m guessing the “sexuality, nudity, and drug references” will upset audiences as little as did the romantic encounters between a pair of gay lovers in last year’s production of Fellow Travelers. Anyone who has any familiarity with Frida Kahlo’s life will know the woman wasn’t exactly a nun, and will simply view the opera’s action as a reflection of her personality. But the CO’s management is acting responsibly and making sure no one is taken by surprise.

Good thinking.

This made me wonder how many operas that are repertoire standards today should have included audience warnings when they had their world premieres. Die Walküre surely had to be one of them, and probably Tannhäuser and Tristan und Isolde, as well. We know La Traviata was frowned upon for making a heroine of a courtesan, and I suspect the tale of the “fallen woman” Manon didn’t receive the warmest reception, either. Tosca, with its torture and attempted rape, definitely would have needed a warning.

What I'd give to be a time traveller ...