I know virtually nothing about opera other than the fact that is pretty much all singing and generally in a different language. However, good opera is like pornography and even if you know nothing about the subject matter, you know it when you see it. With that said, Verdi's A Masked Ball was fantastic. I think this was the first time I have seen an opera in its proper form as I don't consider seeing the Marriage of Figaro at the Miller Outdoor Theatre last year because we were not paying much attention. Thus, like trying to rank college football teams in the preseason, I really don't have anything to go on. I have season tickets for the Houston Grand Opera this year, so hopefully my future reviews will have more meat in them as I begin to become an opera fan. This was opening night for the HGO's 2007-08 season and it started with a bang.
For the uninitiated, A Masked Ball revolves around a love triangle among the king (Riccardo), his trusted advisor/friend (Renato) and Renato's wife/Riccardo's love interest (Amelia). Their was murder, treachery, assassination plots, dudes in sweet green jackets and top hats, a sweet guillotine (though completely underutilized), a bad ass fortune teller, and even a dad offering up his son as a hostage. It was in Italian and had English subtitles (or supertitles as you had to look up to read them), but I feel a little gypped because there was a lot of singing that didn't have the requisite subtitles, so I have no idea if I missed something subtle they were saying. The acting and music were great and the storyline kept my interest the whole way.
Overall, for my first opera, I had a great time and I look forward to the rest of the season. Next Friday night is Donizetti: The Daughter of the Regiment.
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When they are singing and there are no supertitles - its becuase they are repeating stuff they have already said. If you listen carefully next time, you will see they often repeat a sentence when they break into a full blown song. So you were not jipped.
And FYI, this is not my first and I loved it. It really was a great show. One of my top 2 favorites now.
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