Cosi Fan Tutte (Women Are Like That)

This past weekend, Kristy and I attended an opera of the same title as this post. Before I begin my professional critique of the performance, let me say this: "Three and a half hours of opera singing is fine as long as all of it is necessary, but having multiple solos with no apparent progression (due to the lack of subtitles after the first bar sung) is a bit much."

The Civic Opera House in Chicago is a magnificent building. The decor was almost awe-inspiring, as was pointed out to me a few times. The lobby area was all marble, with a few cherry wood drink stands, offering wine, mixed drinks and San Pellegrino water. Inside the actual theater, there were incredible murals all over the walls and the ceilings. The entire room was trimmed in gold, which might sound a tad gaudy, but it was actually very majestic. The seats were velvet and cushiony, which was nice.

The people attending the opera were exactly what I expected. A great majority were typical members of high society, dressed in fur coats (obviously they don't know the real face of fur), tuxedos and evening gowns. I am glad I wore a tie, as if I hadn't, I would have been severely underdressed. It was interesting listening to the various topics of discussion between obviously well-off people. Topics varied from business associates discussing their clients to apparent couples discussing how wonderful the show is going to be.

After sitting down, Kristy and I discussed the aforementioned decor and people. It was very pleasant, even after people sat on both sides of us. The couple next to Kristy were also attending their first opera and we briefly discussed that. Apparently, later, when a man sat behind the woman of the couple, he told her to get her jacket off the seat and to check it. I missed the altercation, but Kristy said he was ridiculously intense about it.

Then the show started. People sang beautifully. Intermission (Did you know that the intermission was a product of Renaissance Italy, in which a long performance was halted for a few minutes while a short performance, generally a comedy sketch, was performed.... interesting, I know). More beautiful singing. Finé.

I give the performance a 4/5. It could have gotten a 5/5, if they would have shortened the opera solos and the Chinese food before the performance had been fresher.