People just don’t fall in love like Mimi and Rodolfo anymore, do they?

by Jessie Hethcoat

Blog universe, how I’ve forsaken you. I apologize and intend to begin self publishing semi-regularly once again. If anyone cares… Maybe someone cares a little bit?

Today I was inspired to write a little somethin’ by none other than Puccini. I guess that means it takes a lot for me to be inspired while on summer vacation, doesn’t it? It’s gotta be one of the greatest composers of all time AND my favorite opera to do the trick. Nonetheless, it happened. Here is my rave, my rant, my desperate plea to share an art form that so many my age have yet to discover.

I arrived to the corporate hell hole and place of summer employment that is Jamba Juice this morning at 8 a.m., only to find out that my shift was cut. Over-scheduling isn’t something I usually cherish, but for this day in particular, something about it felt right. So, so right.

I got home, settled in with some loose cotton and strawberry yogurt, and began searching the web. I somehow began looking at movie times, where I found and was reminded of the MET Summer Encore series that is at a movie theater NEAR YOU, yes YOU! When I saw that a local theater was showing La Boheme at 10 a.m., I was there faster than you can say Mango-a-g0-g0.

I don’t want to sound like a walking billboard, but screw it: it was awesome!

First of all, it’s the effing Metropolitan Opera. So the singers, the conductors, the directors, the sets are all top of the line. I got to show up to an opera in my American Apparel hoodie and flip flops. I was able to see EXPRESSIONS without the use of binoculars. I sobbed my way through “Che Gelida Manina” with no one in the four chairs on either side of me, in peace and total non-embarassment.

Opera as cinema somehow worked. It was ceremonious, theatrical, consuming and awe-inspiring. Everything an opera should be, just on a smaller scale.

Ticket: $18 – but I got in paying $7.50 by using my AMC gold ticket that I bought in two packs from Costco, which was an unplanned smart move. Look into it.

Duration: 4 acts, 130 minutes

The Met filmed the performance I saw in April of 2008. Franco Zeffirelli directs, Angela Gheorghiu sings Mimì, and tenor Ramón Vargas plays her lover, Rodolfo. Nicola Luisotti conducts. Each of them spectacular. I need to watch more opera before I feel comfortable truly reviewing their performances.

Now, why does opera constantly inspire me to put my words out into the blogosphere? Because of experiences like buying my ticket at the theater today.

When I went up and asked the box office worker, a girl almost exactly my age, for one ticket to see La Boheme, she looked at me blankly. I had to explain to her that La Boheme was an opera, the MET opera film. She didn’t even know it was the name of an opera, or the opera at her theater (that she could probably be watching for free)!!!

It’s ridiculous that something so, so beautiful can be so completely ignored by the general public and worse, stigmatized as it is today.

So dammit, don’t see the latest Katherine Heigl romantic comedy flop. Go see something that’s true and real and beautiful.

Advertisement