Hey Hiveians,
my post today is about my first visit to an opera ever in July 2019 - and that in an Italian city like Verona. So there could not have been a better place for my "premiere". And who doesn't dream of going to an Italian opera and enjoying it not only from the television? It's a completely different feeling - you really feel with the singers and actors.
We had already booked the tickets for the opera "Carmen" in advance of our trip. In retrospect, that wasn't necessary, there were still a lot of seats available (but the arena also has 15,000 seats, of which only two thirds were used for the audience). But I would still advise everyone to book a ticket in advance - who would want to miss an opera when beeing already in Italy?
So we decided to go for the Opera "Carmen". That was rather because we could integrate the evening at the opera into our planning and less because we had looked at the content of the opera. Carmen depicts the events of the Spanish Civil War, maybe some of you will know the play, it's quite well-known. After my holiday in Italy I went to my parents' house, and behold, they watched exactly the performance of Carmen from Verona in the german television. That the opera will even be broadcast on German television I would not have thought then.
I liked the Opera itself relatively well, although I had read some negative criticism about it before. However, I have no other comparison to "Carmen", because it was my first opera ;)
Musically the opera was top, the only thing that bothered me was that the stage was almost always very crowded with objects. It became a bit confusing.
I must honestly admit that the opera lasted about two and a half hours, which didn't really encourage my attention. But it was very pleasant that there was a big screen for the audience on which the English translation was shown. Even if I don't remember much of the content, I would strongly recommend the opera to anyone who is in Verona. It is just a great feeling to sit in the huge amphitheatre and listen to the voices of the opera singers, even if you don't necessarily understand what they are saying. The darkness and the bright lights on stage and the costumes of the opera singers do the rest.
Also quite funny: As you can see on the picture below, there is a red square with chairs directly in front of the stage. There sat those who paid more money for their tickets. Then a ticket does not cost 20 or 30 € anymore but 200 €. But from down there it was surely a great experience. The audience that sat down there was not let in until much later and most of them had great evening dresses and fancy suits. But also there were a lot of free seats and at most one third of the chairs were occupied.
Unfortunately I was not able to take more photos of the play because it was forbidden. There were always some flashes in the dark, but I didn't dare to do that and it is nicer for the opera singers ;)
Finally, a few words about the Arena: the Arena in Verona is - after the Colosseum in Rome and the Arena of Capua - the third largest of the preserved ancient amphitheatres. It was built around the year 30 A.D. and at that time was located outside the Roman city walls of Verona. In Roman times the arena held over 30,000 spectators and was used for gladiator fights and competitions. Today, only four arches of the outer ring, which once completely surrounded the arena, are still preserved.
I am looking forward to your feedback and would be very happy about a comment!