I've been thinking about how I laugh when I like how I sound. I think I've described here before what I like about live opera - how the singer's voice vibrates through your entire body. It's amazing, a visceral experience. And when I can achieve that resonance, it resonates throughout my own body. I don't know if it's reaching anyone else's body, but I feel it in mine. Mostly in my head, but still it's my entire body. Once I get there, I have to relax into to it to maintain it. And when I feel it I get so excited that I laugh and I lose it. It's kind of like making yourself see the 3D in those 3D pictures. Sort of. You have to relax and go blurry and then when part of it comes into focus your brain will catch it and bring the rest of it into focus. If you let go of that state of mind you'll lose the picture. So it's not exactly like that, but the idea is sort of similar.
I haven't told my teacher yet that I had this extra lesson. Is that weird? Should I have told her? I don't think it matters. I will ask her to listen to me sing Una Donna to see if I can do what I'm trying to do with it. And of course I'll tell her. I just didn't call her or email her or anything like that.
And OH! I have to write about my customer service incident with the Met.
I ordered tickets the day they went on line, in August. To date I still haven't received them so this morning I emailed to find out what the deal was. Here, read it yourself. I cut off the names to protect the innocent, ha ha.
She didn't respond to that email so I called about an hour later. I spoke to a very nice man who immediately said that of course they can print out new tickets and I should have them within two weeks. He gave me his name and extension and said to call him directly if there were any problems. So... why couldn't the woman do that after I sent her two emails asking them to do so? It's not like they tear and take the ticket - they scan a bar code. And she told me in the email that the originals have been deactivated. The man on the phone agreed with me and took care of it. He could see the emails while we were speaking so I didn't need to explain a thing. He figured that since there were two different orders, it's possible that someone might have pulled them aside to combine them into one envelope and somehow an error was made. He said there is no record of the tickets being returned to them, and it's possible that the post office lost the mail. (two orders?) But none of that matters. He was super sweet. I guess I learned my lesson - next time, call first.Hello,I made the attached ticket order online in August. I also ordered tickets on the telephone earlier that same day for Carmen in January and Die Zauberflote in April. Can you give me an idea of when the all tickets will be mailed out? Or, if they were mailed out already, I never received them. What is the procedure if that is the case?Thank you for your help,
*****Thank you for contacting us.
We regret your tickets did not arrive at your mailing address and we have processed passes for you to pick up at the Box Office. Our Box Office is located in the North End of the Front lobby of the Metropolitan Opera House.
Your passes will be available for you to pick up starting two hours prior to curtain time for each performance and we recommend you allow at least 45 minutes for any lines that may have formed.
As you may know, Lincoln Center is currently undergoing redevelopment. Access to buildings, parking garages and the ramp in front of the Plaza may be diverted to an alternate entrance. Please allow extra travel time to adjust for any delays you may encounter during this construction. To obtain the most current information, please call 212.546.2656. We appreciate your patience during this time and apologize for any inconvenience you may experience.
Again, we apologize for any inconvenience that this may have caused you. If we can be of further assistance, please feel free to contact us. Thank you for your support of the Metropolitan Opera.
Sincerely,
***********
Thank you so much for your quick reply.
I'd much rather have the tickets in hand prior to the performance to avoid standing in lines on the day of the performance. Also, for some of the performances I am meeting a friend who will be arriving separately, so she will need her ticket before hand. I have not had problems receiving tickets in the mail in the past.
Here is the info:
My telephone order number was xxxxxxx.
The tickets were:
Carmen - Jan (details details details)
Die Zauberflote - April (details details details)
The email order number was xxxxxx
La Fille du Regiment - (details details details)
I spent a total of $630.
Please resend the tickets to me at:
(my name and address)
My telephone number is xxxxx
I will send you an email to confirm that I've received the tickets when they arrive. If for some reason the original tickets also come I will of course let you know and will either destroy them or return them, whatever your preferred procedure is.
Thank you so much for your attention to my request.
*******I regret that we are not able send you replacement tickets as our records indicate these tickets were printed and mailed on August 18th.For security reasons, all passes for lost tickets are held at our box office for pick up. It is not our intention to inconvenience you in any way. This procedure is in place to ensure that you will have tickets in your possession for the performance. We do not want to risk losing your tickets a second time. If you prefer to have your friend pick up the passes (one person can pick them up), you may send us her name and indicate the performances. She will need the order number (xxxxxx or xxxxx) and photo identification to pick up the tickets; however, she will not be required to present the credit card used for purchase.
If the tickets do turn up in the interim, please contact us again and we will remove the passes to allow you to gain entrance with the original tickets. Sometimes customers do find misplace tickets in with other mail or elsewhere prior to the performance dates.
Please let us know if you require further assistance.
Thank you for supporting the Metropolitan Opera.
***********
I understand that your records show that the tickets were printed and mailed and that you have security procedures in place. I also understand that you have no intention of inconveniencing me or any of your customers.
However, it is not possible for me to alter my plans for the evenings I am attending the opera in order to stand in line up to 45 minutes. It sounds as if the original tickets have already been deactivated. Therefore it makes no sense to me why you can't resend a me a set of tickets or else the passes. Again, I paid over $600. That may not seem like a lot of money to many of your customers, but it is a huge amount to me. After paying that sum of money I do not feel I should be inconvenienced simply because your records show the tickets were mailed. Bottom line is, I didn't get them. You did, however, charge my credit card.
I would like to have the tickets in hand prior to the dates of the performances. I will be traveling into New York from central New Jersey for each performance and have made plans for before the performances. After paying over $600 for these tickets, I find it unreasonable to be asked to alter my plans stand in line for possibly up to 45 minutes. Perhaps the passes can be mailed out instead? You have all of my info in your system. I can provide you my credit card number over the phone if that would help you process my request. Certainly there must be a way you can honor my request. Perhaps you can pass my email along to a supervisor who is able to circumvent these security procedures.
Please call me if you would like additional information such as the credit card information.
etc etc
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