Endings and Beginnings, Year #2

Final Traviata performance was this afternoon. For some reason I was a little nervous but I made it across stage without a spill. No spills at all - hooray! Although a teeny tiny part of me wanted to get out on stage on my hands and knees one last time... ok not really. Well maybe a little.

I said a general goodbye as I left the dressing room but I don't think anyone heard me. Everyone is zonked-out tired beyond belief from their boot-camp schedule and as I type this they're all BACK at the theater for a performance of Merry Widow.

But on to the fun stuff - I left the dressing room and trotted upstairs to meet Jimmy! Anyone who's been reading my blog and the accompanying comments knows that he is a regular commenter here. We first "met" on YouTube, of all places, when he commented on the Magic Flute videos I posted. Turns out his brother was one of the dancers. Go ahead, read the comments here. Wow they're from a year ago! So anyhoo we eventually connected on one of the popular social networking sites and today we connected in person. Although he almost didn't make it in - he had purchased a ticket in advance and it was allegedly waiting for him, but when he got there they had no record, although no doubt they charged his credit card. So the woman at the ticket desk said, "Sorry kid, you're out of luck, it's sold out," or something like that. I'm sure he'll add a comment to this post with the exact line, but I do recall he said she used the word "kid." So he was sitting in the lobby wondering what to do when one of the opera company Head Honchos came out, saw him there and told the ticket person to give him a standing room ticket. Whew. So he didn't see Alfredo put the flower down, or Violetta wake up on the table and look around, but he made it in by the time we were setting the table.

It was so much fun to meet in person! We got along instantly just like we do online. There was no weirdness at all. He gave me this really cool book - The Opera Lover's Companion. It's perfect - it has lists of operas with a little background about how each came to be written and then a synopsis. I was totally surprised that he got me a gift.

So then we watched Act 3 and I cried my eyes out. Silently of course. I thought of it as Opera Therapy. When Violetta pleads with God not to take her so young when her life is just beginning I pretty much lost it. I mean that part always makes me weepy but in light of recent events it pushed me over the edge and I had to really struggle not to sob audibly. OH and OF COURSE... As soon as the singing began, a woman seated below us very slowly unwrapped a cough drop or hard candy or something... oh so slowly... and then of course slowly folded it up. WHY WHY WHY???? She had all of intermission to unwrap an entire package of hard candies - why did she wait until people were singing????? Ahem rant over.

After it ended I brought him downstairs and we bumped into Liz (Violetta) as she was headed down to the dressing rooms, so he got to meet her. I had never seen her in the "sick and dying" makeup up close. It was creepy. The makeup people are really good - she had yellow makeup on all around her eyes - she really looked sallow and ill. Well, not completely - her eyes were bright and happy with the excitement of the performance so there was this contradiction - sickly complexion with healthy bright eyes.

We went into downtown to meet Husband and Alex for dinner, then I walked Jimmy back to the train station. Jimmy, I know you read the blog - feel free to comment with any corrections and additions.