"Aida" at the ballpark.

[duccio]

Last night djaza and I went into SF to see Verdi's Aida at AT&T Park. It was a free simulcast on the ballpark jumbotron. 3,000 people were in attendance at the Opera House, while the announcer at the stadium said there were 32,000 people there. Here are two articles about this.
http://sfciviccenter.blogspot.com/2010/09/aida-at-ballpark.html
http://sfciviccenter.blogspot.com/2010/09/san-francisco-opera-opening-2010.html
I took a lot of pics, but the ones in the first article show what was happening pretty well. We had a good time, and I pretty much agree with what the reviewer said about the singing, but I liked the "silly" production. (One wonders if this was the reviewer's first opera experience if he just now noticed the silly.)

During the triumphal scene they had an acrobatics display by a troop that must have been from Cirque du Soleil. The videography has really improved and I think I would prefer now to always see Opera in the ballpark rather than in the Opera House; the communal spirit was wonderful. The sound was very good but boomy sometimes, and a bit loud when Aida let loose with an occasional triple forte.

The blue jean'd crowd
arriving via public transit and on foot, surrounding the ballpark.

Ritorna Vincitor!
It was a perfect warm and beautiful, fogless night with a near full moon watching us from above the jumbotron.

What will happen
to poor lovelorn Aida, la sciava?

The fans.
They applauded after the arias and ensembles, after the Acts and the curtain calls, just as enthusiastically as at the Opera House.

The two best singers:
Amonasro, father of Aida, King of Ethiopia.

Amneris, jealous daughter of Pharoah.

Remorse... Pace. Pace. Pace.
Fin dell'Opera.

Comments

Thanks for the links

[(Anonymous)]

The colorful production was perfect for the ballpark, but WAS very silly in the opera house, and this is coming from somebody who's been going to the San Francisco Opera for the last forty years on a regular basis. Nice photos and story, by the way.

Re: Thanks for the links

[duccio]

Thanks for your comment. I'll tell you, the Baseball Park audience seemed to really love it just as you say. Of course, they perhaps are expecting spectacle in arenas like that - even since Roman times, and Aida is the perfect vehicle to deliver it. When the blue elephant was carried out during Act 2 Scene 2, the delight was audible. I liked the connection to the Chinese New Years Parade that my memory supplied, providing another connection along with the Giants, to contemporary life in San Francisco.

[shinsetsu]

Wow! Free? That is amazing, and that 32,000 people took part just warms your heart, doesn't it? I think that is grand. :)

I have never been to such a venue. I did see 'Madame Butterfly' in the theatre once as film. I don't know what version I saw, but it was not the 1995 one.

[duccio]

The Metropolitan Opera does broadcasts to several theaters in the Bay Area. You could probably attend some of those performances and become acquainted with Opera. I have always been an amateur musician, but was not interested in Opera until about 1982. At that time, I had a girlfriend who liked to listen to Opera and she would turn it on the radio on Saturday morning to listen to the Met. I lost her, but kept the Met. Later I developed a friendship with a chorus member at the SF Opera and he started teaching me about the fine points of Opera singing (listening to singers) and got me invited to several years of dress rehearsals and actual shows when unsold tickets were available. It quickly became a newfound and unexpected love of my life.

If you like classical music and have any interest in Opera, you could not give yourself a better treat to enjoy for the rest of your life, than to develop your interest and knowledge about Opera. Of course, it is not for everybody, but for those who love it, "it's the best there is". (I quote Nicolas Cage, who tells this to Cher in Moonstruck.)

[mariposa_regina]

What a fun evening! Thanks for sharing your experience.

[duccio]

You are welcome. They have one of these a year. Why don't you think about attending the next one, it's quite an experience and a good reason to visit SF. This year Aida was the third one, last year was Il Trovatore, and the first one in 2008 was Lucia di Lammermoor. Maybe next August start checking for the next one. We were hoping maybe it would be Carmen.

You pre register on line, and print out a barcoded form which you take to the ball park for admission. The preregistering puts you on their email list for notices about half price tickets and other occasional news. Here is the SF Opera website:
http://sfopera.com/

Hurrah for opera

[mariposa_regina]

Thanks. I put a reminder on my calendar for next year.

I went to the opera in SF last year and loved it. We had the cheap seats but were able to see the whole thing better than most because of the video projection screens. Turned out the performance was the same day as the gay pride parade, quite a different kind of theater.

Re: Hurrah for opera

[duccio]

...a different kind of theater!

that is for certain sure... however it is equally certain that each influences the other, and in most wonderful ways, too.