At the Teatro alla Scala

It was Great. I watched Angela Gheorghiu, Romananian soprano extraordinaire in person and loved the entire performance.

The entire setting of the theatre enhanced the experience. Forget the Esplanade Theatres' claims of acoustic superiority, they cannot compare aesthetically. Sitting at my stall seat and looking up towards at the horse-shoe shaped galleries, its easy to imagine the theatre in another era; men in knee-length coats, breeches, stockings and (powdered?)wigs, with their fair companions all decked out in fine gowns complete with ruffled sleeves, dainty slippers and paper fans for flirting. Their prestigious elevated boxes not only providing them a birds' eye view of the audience but also to be gawked at and admired. In short, a place to see and be seen. That is not to say that they did not appreciate the fine art of opera, I'm pretty sure they multi-tasked well enough.

I enjoy going to the Esplanade Theatres at home for despite its atypical architecture, it does have other merits. However, as I sat at my seat at La Scala, it was heartening to realize that for ages, people have been sitting at possibly the same spot I was at, perhaps appreciating the same pieces as I was. Given the era in which operatic pieces were written (there are hardly any contemporary operas), it also felt like I was experiencing it as it was meant to be, in an environment that would best showcase the work. Then came the thought that I would probably only feel that way about old theatres in Europe, where these artistic traditions have been in place for centuries.

Indeed, it was somewhat sobering to know that this feeling of heritage would be out of reach when I return home to the modern theatres. More importantly, it will further be worsened by the scarcity of excellent artistes and performances, with the rare few definitely being exorbitantly priced.

No pictures for this post, as photography was forbidden within the theatre.