I’m the winner of the “renew your season tickets early contest” for the 2011-2012 Arizona Opera Season. I won a trip to Seattle, Washington to see Mozart’s “Magic Flute” or “Die Zauberflote,” including two plane tickets, two nights at a hotel and two “VIP” opera tickets.
Let me back up. Because I’d read several mysteries where some rich person stages an opera in their spacious country home and during the opera someone is actually killed, I decided to attend “The Mikado” at the Mesa Arts Center. I realize some do not consider that opera, but let’s not quibble. I loved it. As fate would have it, the next week I received an Arizona Opera’s coming season brochure and one of their selections was “The Mikado” so I signed up for season tickets and it’s been a love-fest ever since.
Anyway, back to my Seattle trip. My friend Elba consented to accompany me even though she’d never seen an opera. We decided to extend our trip to Seattle by 3 days and do some sightseeing.
I had never seen “The Magic Flute” and each synopsis I read made the plot seem ever more absurd but I’ve found it always seems logical when you see it. Now that I think about it, the Ring does not fit into the “plot is self-explanatory when enjoying the opera” statement.
Also, on-line I saw Seattle also has a “pre-opera” talk at 6:00 PM for a 7:30 opera start. I always attend those in Phoenix and thought it would be helpful for Elba to ease her into her first opera.
The Marion McCaw Opera building is located at the Seattle Center and there is a Food Court there but there are 4 dining options at the opera building itself: a snack bar similar to the dessert stall at Phoenix with an emphasis on sandwiches rather than dessert. Wine is available. There is a full restaurant where one could eat at anytime. Some had reservations but they seemed to be able to accommodate walk-ins as well. There is the “after the pre-talk” meal and then the “intermission” meal that is served in the actual restaurant.
As we followed the usher to our seats, we realized that we had darn good “VIP” seats. We were 8 rows back of the stage just left of center. Excellent seats!
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| Lynn enjoying the Pacific Northwestern Rainforest. |
“Die Zauberflote” is hands-down the silliest opera I’ve ever seen and the excellent staging just heightened that sense of absurd magic. When Tamino, the hero, played his magic flute, out burst, among other creatures, a dragon, a rhinocerous with glitter, a pink ostrich, tumbling monkeys, and an alligator adding a lot of color and laughter to entertain us. Later when Papageno, the bird catcher, marries Papagena (a hag turned into a beautiful girl oddly resembling her new husband) 5 or 6 tiny tots in bright green wigs and feathers popped up giggling and waving and generally being cute as a bug’s ear. Elba loved her first opera.
At intermission, Elba and I sprinted to the restaurant worried about time but our pre-ordered food arrived as soon as we sat down – it was delicious and attractive: a butter lettuce salad with Cara Cara navel oranges, avocado and Dungeness crab with green goddess dressing. We even had time for a dessert of bread pudding with crème Anglais. Yummy.
I’m looking forward to the next Arizona Opera season and to my trip to Italy to for operas in Venice, Parma, Florence and Milan. Ciao!
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