Bucks
Carmen
Dear Friends,
Good morning. Four weeks ago, my plan was to write about Mighty Betsy’s and my experience seeing the Metropolitan Opera Company’s performance of “Carmen,” Georges Bizet spectacular story and music about lust, betrayal and murder…not in New York City, mind you, but at the movies. Alas, Guillain-Barre Syndrome suddenly struck me, so I wrote about GBS and my recovery instead.
We have friends who sing in the Met’s chorus and have often trekked into Manhattan to see and hear them. But on January 16, instead of taking the Bieber Bus to New York City and spending a ton of money to take in “Carmen,” we went to the Met at the Regal Warrington cinema instead. Since 2006, the Met has simulcasted several performances for movie theaters across America.
The Regal stadium theater was packed…every one of its 458 seats filled. We should have planned to be at the theater one hour earlier. Having seat options is a good idea, and besides, it was fun to see what the people wore. One blue-haired lady stalked into the theater wearing a full-length mink coat and matching hat! Others wore jeans, sweat shirts, and baseball caps. Several brought their picnic lunches in paper bags.
It was definitely an older crowd. “There were plenty of cue-tip women in the audience,” MB observed, “and lots of jangling charm bracelets.” But the people were demonstrative and enthusiastically applauded and whistled at the end of each act.
During intermission, an older man sitting behind us was obviously impressed with himself because he was escorting two well-dressed ladies. “When I was younger and thinner, Carmen would have chased me,” he bragged. MB silently stuck her tongue at him.
I was impressed with “Carmen” at the movies. At the Met, I have to use binoculars to see the singers' faces and they’re still far away. But at the cinema, the screen is huge. Elina Garanca sang the title role. She’s drop-dead gorgeous…plus she has a great voice. Garanca played that devil-woman’s role perfectly.
The next day, we called our Met chorister friends. They told us that the tenor, Teddy Tabu Rhodes, was from New Zealand and learned that he would substitute for Mariusz Kwiecien just three hours before the curtain rose. The change was not perceptible. Rhodes played the part of Escamillo, the toreador, with swagger and brilliance. We could understand why “Carmen” was swept off her feet.
Part of the fun of the Met at the movies was during intermissions. Met diva Renee Fleming played hostess and conducted interviews behind the curtain with singers and dancers. And you could see the stagehands move the sets from one scene to another. We never would have experienced those intimate glimpses had we been at the Met in Manhattan.
I asked our Met choristers about the Met at the movies. In September 2006, the Met gave its first simulcast of its live opera on huge screens above Times Square. Thousands occupied the pavement and spilled into the street, bringing the intersection to a standstill. Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” was so popular that the Met began to broadcast several performances during the opera season. Now, movie houses across America present the Met’s performances via the silver screen.
Philadelphia has a very good opera company. During its 2010 season, the Opera Company of Philadelphia (OCP) presents five operas with 22 performances. OCP finds its roots right here in Bucks County with Adele and Douglas Paxon who lived in Solebury Township. Adele’s close friend, Franca Warden also a Solebury Township resident, is still active in opera circles. The Paxons presided over the Lyric Opera Company, precursors to OCP.
On the other hand, the Met is huge…it’s opera headquarters for America. My friends told me that the Met produces 28 operas and more than 175 performances each year. There are seven performances each week during a season, which begins in late October, and ends May 15.
MB and I remember singing under David Stivender, the Met’s former chorus master. A failing heart took him in the prime of life. Stivender had memorized 31 operas, cover to cover…every note and word for soloists, chorus, and orchestra! His knowledge and talent was extraordinary.
At the Berkshire Choral Festival (
Stivender stopped the orchestra dead in its tracks. Pointing to the second trombonist, Stivender admonished, “That’s an E natural, not an E flat…it’s second position [on the slide trombone], not third.” Not only did Stivender hear the mistake, he knew which musician made it and could tell him how to correct it.
Alas, I’ve strayed…but it was fun.
Finally, and before I forget, you’ll be interested in what we spent for our day with “Carmen” at the Met. The movie tickets cost $48 for the two of us, plus a delicious meal at McDonald’s for $8. Parking was free. So, for $56, MB and I had a ball.
Two opera’s at the movies are coming up. First, on March 27, the Met will present Ambroise Thomas’ “Hamlet” and on May 1, Gioachino Rossini’s “Armida.” Don’t be afraid of Ambroise Thomas. His “Hamlet” was first presented at the Paris Opera in1868. Nineteenth century Parisians wouldn’t stand for tuneless music. Opera buffs won’t be disappointed.
And whenever you get the opportunity to see and hear Rossini operas, take advantage of it. “The mythical story [Armida] of a sorceress who enthralls men in her island prison has inspired operatic settings by a multitude of composers,” the Met Overview explained. Renee Fleming stars in the title role, opposite no fewer than six tenors! Not only does Fleming have a fabulous voice, she’s a very good looker too.
You don’t
want to miss these performances. Call the Regal Warrington at
Sincerely,
Charles Meredith