Our Good Friend Royalty
Finally here it is: the big one, the one we have all waited for. It’s the Metropolitan Opera House, the biggest stage in the world, playing Aida, one of the grandest operas of all time. There was hype, there was build up, but would it meet expectations?
Upon entering the MET, it meets you, it greets you, and it even seats you. What would that be? None other than our good friend royalty. The ceilings were gold (is it real or plated?) and the floor was covered in an elegant carpet far better than anything found at home. The bathrooms weren’t particularly extravagant but that’s ok, we’ll give them a break on that one. Once you actually make your way to your seat, you are met with our good friend again. The seats are gorgeous and awfully comfortable in their red velvet. You look up again, at which point you find more gold in addition to a collection of some of the most expensive chandeliers known to man (or at least they looked that way to me, and I’m no poor junkie).
Let’s forget about the actual venue and focus on the opera, which was not too shabby itself. Our good friend (royalty) now took on new form, which was of course the set. From the costumes, to the scenery, it was unlike anything I had ever seen. At times, it seemed as though the opera was outside, especially since there were upwards of 40 people on stage at once. Oh, and let’s not forget the horses, I mean come on, who brings horses on stage during a theatrical performance? That’s grand. That’s royal.
But it’s the actors that make the performance, not the inordinate amount of money spent on production. Simply put, Angela Brown and co. delivered. The music was engaging, the singers’ voices were top notch, and the drama was intense throughout. The only negative was the beginning of Act IV in which Amneris went on and on about her love for Radames or the intentions of Aida, I am not entirely sure, I fell asleep during it, but awoke as soon as her performance was silenced.
It was grand. Not much more can be said. A perfect theatrical performance? Certainly. Worth upwards of $100 per ticket? If you have it. Just don’t expect the atmosphere of a football game.
December 18th, 2007 at 2:44 am
Daniel, this is hilarious! The Met definitely did “meet, greet and seat us”.
I think you feel asleep because it was late, though. Amneris’ voice was so high its hard to imagine anyone sleeping through it.
I found the last sentence especially funny. Were you expecting a football game? It fit with the humorous tone of your article and I imagine that your intended audience was a bunch of students like us who had never been to the opera.