Past Two Days; Opera

I thought I would update on what I was doing yesterday and today. I also went today to Ariadne auf Naxos at the Staatsoper, by Strauss. I will be reviewing that opera, but I will do that on my other blog and then copy that in a separate post here. I will briefly touch on the process though. Here, also copied from the opera blog, is what I was doing yesterday, after a fairly normal day of class, etc. and waiting around until 9:45.

Program with Furlanetto's signature with ticket

I went back to the Wiener Staatsoper last night to see if I could see the stars and get signatures from them or pictures of them. I hung around various places and watched from a coffee shop across the way until about 9:45 when Simon Boccanegra ended and then went to stand at the correct stage door, this time. It was a long wait, almost an hour, for them to come out (which I understand, but I think they came out earlier for the Saturday performance, because at the wrong stage door people were telling me they were long gone, by then). I did enjoy meeting people and talking to them about opera, in the meantime, however.

Close up of Furlanetto's signature

When the stars finally did come out, the first was Ferruccio Furlanetto. He was nice enough and signed my program (right in the center part, mind). I don't mind, though. He may not be as famous as Plácido Domingo, but he is a pillar of the opera business, and a great bass and actor. After this, Barbara Frittoli came out trailed by people carrying flowers. She seemed to be a bit dazed, but cordially signed my program and when I thanked her, she thanked me in return. Furlanetto barely spoke at all, Frittoli spoke a reasonable amount. The conductor also passed by, but I let him go as he seemed to be moving with purpose.

Frittoli's signature

Plácido Domingo then came out, preceded by a man saying that he would not be signing anything that night. I think he probably didn't Tuesday night, but maybe I'm just telling myself that so I feel better about being at the wrong door... In any case, he then did come out and some people were begging him, of course. He got a little agitated at this point, and said something like, "No, I really can't. I have to leave for rehearsals for Tosca in Washington (D.C.)," and then he pointed out, "I had said I wasn't even going to come out."

Some people might've been upset about this, and it was disappointing, of course. That said, you have to respect someone's need for rest, especially someone like Domingo who takes on so much (conducting, artistic direction, singing two different voice types (perhaps it is too much, but nonetheless, impressive)). He did however, pass right by me since I was standing in the threshold of the doorway, so I was touching him. He then kind of got pushed back onto me by the throng, before making his way through, getting in his car, and leaving. After people got the message that he really wouldn't be signing or posing or anything, he warmed up and was very gracious. All in all a fun experience. Next up is a review of the Staatsoper's production of Richard Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos, and hopefully his Arabella after that.

My teacher preparing pastries

A better view of the spoils

Now that that's been described, I can talk about earlier today (Wednesday, that is). I got up a little bit later and then went to the Naschmarkt for class. We were divided into groups and we had to get something from different places. My group was the cheese group, so we went to Käseland in the center of the Naschmarkt and bought, as prescribed, 10 pieces of Gouda, 10 pieces of Austrian (as opposed to Swiss) Emmentaler, and a wedge of Brie. I then finally walked to IES for the first time, since I was already close, and it was shorter than I anticipated. It's so easy to get on the U-Bahn that I don't know how much I'll walk (especially when it gets colder) but I enjoyed it and may do it from time to time. Once we got to class, we had a meal based on the cheese, meat, vegetables, bread, and juice the groups brought from the Naschmarkt. It was one of the most delicious meals I've had since I've come here. It will certainly inspire me to go back to the Naschmarkt more often!

We then took a class trip to the local Billa, where the teacher gave us her native take on the various products, where to find certain things, and answered all of our questions. I haven't had much trouble shopping here, to date, but it was a nice primer, even three weeks in. It was fun to go with the class and have the teacher tour us around, too.


When I went back to the opera, I got there with a half hour less to spare, figuring that since the cast was less prestigious and the opera less well-known. I got in maybe with 12-20 people in front of me. Guaranteed standing room space on the parterre level. It was still a slog standing there, but worth it as the parterre seats were much better in terms of sound and view. I still want to buy a real ticket for an opera I really love while I'm here, but getting there for the parterre is definitely the way to go. Once the Ariadne review is done, I'll send it here, and then I'll possibly have one about Arabella, before posts start coming from Prague, Krakow, and Budapest!