I have attended the opera before, and enjoy it very much. I enjoy the vocal feats, the music, the elaborate sets and costumes. Opera, as some have said, will continue because it is considered by society to be the epitome of culture. However, I don’t believe opera needs to seem inaccessible, nor do I believe it should be put on a pedestal above other art forms.
I have friends who have also attended the opera, but who do not enjoy it in the least. When I have asked out of curiosity what they did not like, they were not entirely sure. I wonder if it doesn’t have something to do with the way opera “sells itself.” The splashiness of opera is not necessarily what makes it inaccessible (many who dislike the opera enjoy the splashy Broadway show), nor is it the use of a foreign language (many who dislike the opera enjoy foreign films). Rather, I believe it is the stereotype that only the elite attend the opera, that the opera is some erudite form to be prized above others. If opera is to reach a wider audience, and if it is to be embraced by that audience, I believe opera must be presented as just another form of music/theater. It must detach itself from its over-the-top and more-cultured-than-thou attitude. There will still be those who dislike it, but it may encourage those who find it unapproachable to experience it.
~Christina Marinelli