Tuesday, March 22, 2011

La Vedova Allegra!

Tonight we had the opportunity to see il Teatro Municipale.  You can't get in for a tour; you can only see it if you go to an event held there.

When I went to the movies the other night, I was drawn to the posters of the "next thing" at the theatre.  It was "La Vedova Allegra." Hmm.  I wonder what that is.  It took me a few minutes to figure out that it was Die Lustige Witwe, also known as The Merry Widow.  The last time I saw it was in Vienna, when I was working on my German!

I thought it would be a relatively easy introduction to the world of opera for the kids, so we went and bought the 10 euro tix -- in the highest possible seats.  Serious nosebleed, based on the charts.

And then I nearly forgot about it!  At dinner time, I gasped and called a quick family meeting -- to read the synopsis for the operetta.  Quick dinner, then off to change and go up to the theatre.

We got there this evening (it was scheduled to start at 9), and it was immediately apparent that I'd missed the "no kids" memo on the show.  The Hook kids were the only ones under about 40, and I was getting some rather disapproving glares.  So I told the kids that they were ambassadors for youth, and impressed upon them the absolute requirement for perfect behavior.

The doors opened at 9 (so much for starting at 9), and we went up the stairs.  And up.  And up.  We were in the 4th tier, and it turned out to be a completely traditional theatre with boxes!  And we had the whole box to ourselves (it only seats 6).  The kids could all squeeze onto the bench right in the front.  We were dead center, and the view was fabulous.

The kids loved it.  They were laughing out loud.  They were asking me about some of the lines over which I was giggling.  They clapped.  They smiled.  They snickered.  We had a wonderful time.

A few (dark -- sorry, no flash allowed!)photos for your enjoyment:
In our box!


The ceiling

View of the Stage from Our Box!

3 comments:

  1. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE tell me there is a performance (ANY performance - even Grateful Dead!)on April 28, 29 or 30 - I really NEED to see this incredible theatre!
    How wonderful that the children enjoyed it so much!
    I remember as a child at the Teatro Municipal in Sao Paulo, going to opera performances and being fascinated by the dimmers - understand that they were non-existent in ordinary homes - I kept watching all the thousands of light bulbs and being convinced that I could actually determine the instant when we went from dim to dark! Such were the pleasure of children in the 50s!!

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  2. I was so excited I forgot to sign!
    Love
    Vovo

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  3. Wow! What a theater! Great photos even in the dark. Daddy would LOVE it if the GD were playing in April. But unfortunately, Jerry Garcia is already dead so he won't be there. So glad we got to see the theater even though we didn't get to go to a show!

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