I had a great time with Andy at the Met last night. We saw La Traviata.
I feel a rush whenever I’m at Lincoln Center. Walking over to it last night, seeing the opera house directly ahead, I felt a surge of pleasure. Something about Lincoln Center makes me feel like a kid, all secure and safe. I wonder if it’s because I saw The Nutcracker there when I was little? The highest of the fine arts are there – opera, ballet, the symphony. Timeless, and sheltered from the rest of the world.
The ticket-takers at the Met wear cloaks. Fancy. And the Met has a true lobby, unlike cramped Broadway theaters. Most operas seem to be three acts, so there are always at least two intermissions, and they’re long – about 20 minutes each. Plenty of time to go out to the various lobby levels and people-watch or go down to the lower level and explore all the portrait paintings of past opera stars.
I’m more or less an opera novice – this was only the third time I’d been to the opera. (And one of those times was an outdoor performance where I could hardly see anything.) It was my second time at the Met, so I’ve now seen both La Bohème and La Traviata at the Met, two of the most accessible operas. (The outdoor opera I saw was Rigoletto, another of the most accessible ones.) Traviata was beautifully performed. I wish I could say more about it, but I’m hardly the opera veteran Andy is. It was terrifically sung. Because the house is so big, though, the sound doesn’t really envelop or overpower you at the Met. I wonder what other opera houses are like.
I’m curious now to attend some less accessible operas. I have some Wagner recordings – the Ring Cycle, Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg, and Tristan und Isolde – and I love most of what I’ve heard. His music seems meatier and his themes more intellectual than the more popular Italian operas. But I’ve never actually seen a Wagner opera performed live. But I enjoyed last night and all its trappings so much that I’ve taken the plunge and bought myself a ticket to see Wagner’s Parisfal at the Met in May – a five-and-a-half-hour opera I’ve never even heard. Yes, I’m possibly crazy, but it’s supposed to be one of his best. I didn’t go for the cheapest ticket, either, because I figure that if I’m going to sit through a five-and-a-half-hour opera, I may as well splurge.
This opera stuff is kinda fun.
I was in the last MEISTERSINGER at the Met a couple of seasons ago and it was great fun. I definitely recommend it when it comes up in the repertory again.
I’d be curious to have Andy weigh in on this, but I think most operas actually are closer to five acts.
I think you’ll find that most well produced opera is faily accessable, regardless of composer. When the production and the singers bring real power and life to the material, no matter how dificult, there’s nothing more exciting. I’m still something of an opera novice, but I sat through all 17 hours of the Ring Cycle last summer at Seattle Opera and found it sometimes thrilling, often exciting, and ocasionaly boring. After going to see a fair number of productions over the last few years, I finaly had my “Pretty Woman” moment (remember when Julia Roberts goes to the opera not knowing what to expect and comes out moved and bawling?) during “Die Walkure”. Thrilling.
There’s no set or standard number of acts for an opera, with the exception of the French Grand Operas of the early 19th c., which are universally 5 acts for some reason. There are 1-act operas (Gianni Schicchi, Der Fliegende Hollaender, Salome), and two act operas (La Cenerentola, Cosi fan tutte), three act operas (Parsifal, Tosca, Die Fledermaus), four act operas (Le nozze di Figaro, Carmen, Aida), and then there’s at least one opera, Don Carlo, which can be performed in either 4 or 5 acts, and other operas, such as the 3-act Wozzeck which is often performed without intermission, or the 3-act Traviata which is sometimes done with one intermission.
I’m glad you had a good time!
If you want a fun, but different experience, try the Amato Opera (on Bowery). It´s really tiny and not of Met caliber, but you can afford to sit up close and the singers are really passionate about what they do. I saw Traviata there in October and enjoyed it immensely.
(PS–thanks for keeping up this page–I really enjoy reading it)
Jeff,
You might want to listen to “Parsifal” before you attend – but then, you’ve probably already thought of that.
I resumed opera-going in 1999 with the Chicago Lyric’s “Tristan.” Ten seconds into the prelude and I was weeping. Last year I sat through and thoroughly enjoyed their Ring Cycle. “Gotterdammerung” started at 5:30 p.m. and ended at midnight. And, it was wonderful!
Vis-a-vis nothing, I heard Birgit Nilsson in “Walkure” in 1967.
Anyway, have a wonderful time. How cool to attend opera with Andy.