Last night, I went to go see a production of Aida at our local Performing Arts Center. As I left the theater, I began to think of all the things one must do to go to an opera. Here's some helpful hints...
1. Going out to dinner before? Order something with Caffeine, and keep getting refils throughout the whole meal.
2. Eat a big dinner.
3. Try and sit up as straight as possible to keep from falling asleep. (Even the most exciting and intense operas sometimes make you want to fall asleep).
4. Dress appropriately. Everyone will give you mean looks if you don't. I'm not the dressing-up type, but a white dress shirt and tie are just fine. Don't overdo it either; tuxedos or suits are really dumb. Just stop and think... what's the point of dressing up that much just to sit in a chair for 3 hours?
5. Familiarize yourself with the synopsis before you go. That way, you don't have to keep looking up at the English supertitles for every line during a long song.
6. Criticize the poor scenery. If you see one prop on the stage that was used in a different scene, make sure you complain. Other people enjoy it and it makes you feel good about yourself. Just don't do it in the middle of the opera... wait until the intermission.
7. Pretend your an American Idol judge. Listen to the voices of the singers. If one of them doesn't do so hot, talk about it with others during the intermission or after the opera. People will respect you for paying attention.
8. Try and enjoy the show! Here's some of my favorites you may be interested in seeing: Turandot, Cavalleria Rusticana, Aida, Carmen, The Barber of Seville, La Traviata, Tosca, La Boheme, and Madama Butterfly.
Links to other sites on the Web
Related Article: The Simplest Aida Synopsis In The World
Forward Upward home page
If you are going to see Aida, click on the "Related Article" link above.
Suggested citation:
Koehler, Robert. "How To Go To An Opera". Forward Upward.
Apr 30, 2005. http://www.deadendinternet.com/forwardupward/opera.html (Access date.)
© 2006 DEAD END! Internet