I’ve been an opera fan for a very long time. And I’m sick and tired of people telling me that opera is “lame” or “boring,” when there are dragons and monsters to be seen!
Not very many people I know are also opera fans. A lot of people think of it as stuffy, or else they just don’t know anything about it. Sometimes I even have to reference this cartoon whenever I talk about opera:
Or, regrettably, this one:
This is a real tragedy to me. In college, opera was one of the things I got into as I became more of an adult. It helped me to see beyond my working-class background to what I potentially could be — someone who saw these stories performed all the time. Going to the opera gave me a chance to dress up and be elegant, even when I felt like the poorest girl in the room (not unlike the main character in Pretty Woman). Opera helped me to remember that even when I felt bad about myself, I still had the ability to be a heroine. I just had to keep riding my steed into battle…
But I get so frustrated by how much people misunderstand opera. Sure, there are some genuinely boring opera productions, just like how there some 100% boring plays and 100% boring movies. But a lot of opera companies are working to make a lot of kick-ass opera productions, not least because they want to appeal to younger audiences. Like the two pictures at the top — those are from Siegfried and Die Walküre, respectfully. The guy in the top picture is slaying a dragon, and he’ll later go on to rescue a princess. The ladies riding “horses” down below are four goddesses of the dead — zombie goddesses! — patrolling a battlefield looking for dead heroes to take back to the world of the gods. That’s freaking cool, right???
Anyway, in an attempt to show how cool opera can really be, I’ve assembled the coolest pictures of opera production that I could find. I hope you enjoy them!
Have you ever seen a live opera production? If so, which one?
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guest
Oh lord don’t get me started!! I absolutely love opera. When I was in high school the local opera house (Bass Performance Hall)
allowed school children to attend final dress rehearsal for free. It
was always the night before opening. I had a crush on my HS teacher so
decided to tag along. And holy shit! Hooked! English sub titles were
projected above the stage so we’d know what was going on. (that helped a
lot) I got to see Lucia Di Lammermoor (my very first one!), Candide (which was in English…),
Aida, Madama Butterfly…..ah love them all. About 6 years ago I saw La Nozze Di
Figaro in Roma Italia. It was brilliant, of course.
*SWOON*
These pics are amazing =)
guest
The storyline might not be boring but the music sucks. I hate that style of music and I hate opera singing. No offense to opera singers out there, that takes an incredible amount of talent, I just don’t like that style of singing (forced vibrato).
Of course, I don’t like classical music in any way, shape, or form, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.
orchid / 123 posts
@secretbeerreporter@xanga - Hey, it’s not for everybody. I’m just saying that we’re TRYING to make it more interesting for people.
guest
GREAT post!
sunflower / 300 posts
I sang opera for nine years, so it makes me REALLY excited when people our age love opera, too!
guest
@secretbeerreporter@xanga - If the vibrato is forced, then that is not a good opera singer. I’m not trying to talk you out of disliking it, but that is just a fact. Vibrato should naturally be as one hears in opera (and not in fake satirical versions of it) and is a result of the singer being perfectly aligned and singing exactly as one should. When I arrived to college I hadn’t discovered my vibrato yet. As a freshman it was a process to find it, because forced vibrato is incredibly unhealthy and my voice teacher would have known right away I was faking it since there would be tension.
I never knew much about opera and assumed it was boring and that the singing style was silly. Then I got to college as a vocalist and started singing arias in my lessons. Now I am in love! The more I learn about opera, the more I love it. I did a research paper on The Marriage of Figaro and saw just how funny opera can be. Opera comes in many shapes and forms, guys! Dramatic, fantasy, comedy. It’s a beautiful thing once you learn to love it!
guest
@Shytooth@xanga - What you’re talking about is exactly why I dropped out of voice lessons when I was in middle school. They wanted to teach me classical/opera and I didn’t want anything to do with it. I still can’t sing a note as a result. That’s OK though. I never much enjoyed it anyway, feels too much like work.
sunflower / 297 posts
Once you get used to hearing opera and classical singers, you really cannot go back. A lot of my aunts and cousins are in love with Josh Groban, and I always have to tell them “yes, he’s very talented, but he is a POP singer. Opera singers do not need to be amplified to be heard over an orchestra”.
For all of you classical nay-sayers, I promis you that you’d enjoy classical music (which includes all music written from 1750-today) if you took some time to understand it. I don’t mean that in a patronizing way. Some people love classical music just because, and most people learn to love it through understanding it. I get bored from listening to pop music. I like it, but it’s boring. Now, give me some Bartok and John Adams and I’ll listen to it a million times without getting bored. (well, maybe not a million…)
(or not, and that’s ok too! I’ve been to a lot of concerts that I haven’t enjoyed. But I still go, because forming an opinion about something is fun!)
Classical music appreciation is dying, but it’s still just as awesome as ever, so take a date to the symphony! If you look up what you’re going to listen to before you go, you’ll enjoy it
sunflower / 297 posts
All western music is based from classical harmonies and forms. So if you listen to any music at all, you’re listening to something that was initially created by a classical composer. @secretbeerreporter@xanga -
guest
@Katherine_the_third@xanga - So says a music snob. I hear absolutely no similarities between the two. The notion of chords, temperament, etc. may be similar, as well as the theory, but the styles are night and day.
That said, my first love when it comes to music doesn’t share a damn thing with western music, so maybe that’s my disliking for it. My main instrument is more based on eastern music theory: just temperament, etc.
guest
i would LOVE to see an opera someday!
sunflower / 332 posts
Thank you my dear, thank you very much!
guest
As a theatre person, I love opera. What I understand, though, is that a lot of people don’t because it doesn’t do what modern music does, which is offer the fast beats and thumps that offer dopamine signals and basically make all modern music a drug. To someone like me, it’s even better, but to most people it’s like giving an alcoholic a glass of water. They don’t know what to do with it. They can’t bang their head, or act crazy while they’re listening to it, so it’s useless to them.
guest
The Youtube mod’s are making certain that your readers continue as operatic ignoramus’.