Page 205 - People & Places In Time

My experience unfortunately, was in winter. Spring is, I expect, beauti- ful and the photographs from Fall are all you would expect in the north east. I would have liked to have had a carriage ride through the park. Alas, there is so much to see and do it will require more time than I will ever have.
The Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is without doubt, at least for me it is, one of the most overwhelming experiences to be found in the world of entertainment. The opera at Lincoln Center begins as you step into the central plaza off the intersec- tion of Broadway and Columbus. To the left is the New York City Ballet; to the right is Alice Tully Hall, home to the New York Philharmonic. Straight ahead past the reflecting pool and fountain at the center of attention is the Metropolitan Opera Theater building.
On this evening we’re on our way to see Giuseppe Verdi’s Don Carlos. Nothing from the moment you walk through the doors is less than grand. The philharmonic and ballet, which I had also attended were beautiful and grand in their own right, but the opera is a step above. The smaller entrance lobby is like
a vestibule peaking your anticipation as you glimpse the spacious main lobby directly ahead. Soaring four stories high with numerous levels connected by swooping staircases, all to reach the box seating levels in the theater. Bright red carpet matching the red upholstered seating is surrounded by walls and columns of white marble. Walking through doors into the theater your eyes immediately turn up to scan four stories of box seating extending straight up from the floor in a horseshoe shape. The red carpet and upholstery extend into the theater with red fabric and gold leaf covering the walls and the front of the box seats. Domi- nating your attention above the floor seating is the very large and ornate crystal chandelier. The large but partially obscured orchestra pit separates the stage from the seating, non-the-less its big enough to hold a full orchestra. Part of the excite- ment, once in your seat, is watching the people dressed to the nines as they make their way to their seats.
The overture begins and there’s a flurry of people rushing to their seat, because once the opera starts no one is permitted in until intermission. The lights dim and the anticipation rises as the chandelier rises toward the ornate domed ceiling. Sitting in your seat the very high and wide curtain in front still doesn’t reveal the enormity of the stage until it begins to part. The sound of the orches- tra, the sumptuous surroundings your own excitement builds then you glimpse the stage set and you know you’ve experienced nothing like this in your lifetime. How could there be this many people on stage in a setting that looks
so real it could be a village in Italy sitting right in front of your eyes. In another scene there must have been fifty or more people filing in from off stage while the king and queen of Spain (characters in the story) as part of a hunting party ride on horseback with solders holding a brace of wolf hounds real dogs and real
The curtain goes up on Act II of “LaBoheme” ~ the two tiered set includes more than 195 choristers, supers and children celebrating the Christmas season.
The concourse at Lincoln Center ~ The Metropolitan Opera at center.
The multi-tiered lobby at the entrance to the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center.
horses stage.
through a forest setting that disappeared into the back of the very deep
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