Goal #26: work my butt off.
I had a bit of a light month this month at work, and I have a few travel plans coming up. I need to get some serious work done at the office. Fun? No. Necessary? Unfortunately.
Recap of goal #25: I tried to go take my test, I really did! And I would have passed with flying colors, except that I didn't get to show my stuff! The testing center closed early on the particular day I chose to go, and I chose that particular day because it was the only day last week that I was free. So...another day, I guess. Hopefully this coming week.
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Friday, June 28, 2013
The Kiss
I saw my final opera of the year, The Kiss, on Wednesday. It was probably my least favorite of the year, which is not to say I didn't enjoy it.
It had particularly jolly music, and I especially appreciated the arrangement of the choral music. There was a lot of rounding, which is a fabulous musical technique, and often when it's used, it's not done well. This was done well. Different voice parts were singing varied but complementary lyrics, and it was simply lovely.
Unfortunately, the libretto left a little something to be desired -- like, for example, a plot. I could've slept through half the show and not missed a bit of the story. It goes like this: couple meets, boy wants girl to kiss him, girl won't kiss him until they're married, and then she caves and kisses him anyway. Two and a half hours later.
As I said, the music was great, but it maybe should've been a one-act show.
It had particularly jolly music, and I especially appreciated the arrangement of the choral music. There was a lot of rounding, which is a fabulous musical technique, and often when it's used, it's not done well. This was done well. Different voice parts were singing varied but complementary lyrics, and it was simply lovely.
Unfortunately, the libretto left a little something to be desired -- like, for example, a plot. I could've slept through half the show and not missed a bit of the story. It goes like this: couple meets, boy wants girl to kiss him, girl won't kiss him until they're married, and then she caves and kisses him anyway. Two and a half hours later.
As I said, the music was great, but it maybe should've been a one-act show.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Il Tabarro and Pagliacci
On to the third opera of the week! Well, technically they were the third and fourth operas of the week, but since they were performed in one evening, I'll leave them stuck together.
On Sunday night, in the midst of a huge and sudden summer storm, I went with E and her friend L to see Il Tabarro and Pagliacci. We began the evening with lovely meals provided by OTSL - I had the veggie tart with potatoes, asparagus, pasta salad provided by L, a delicious chocolate mint truffle, watermelon, prosecco and Perrier to drink, and some of E's blood orange sorbet at intermission. All simply delightful!
Il Tabarro was performed first, and - man! - was it dark! The plot is simple; there are very few characters. The main players are Michele, a ship owner, Michele's wife Giorgetta, and Luigi, one of Michele's employees. It turns out that Giorgetta has a thing for Luigi, and Michele doesn't take that news very well. It's short, it's dark, it's super intense. And there's a man with a cape.
Pagliacci is nominally less depressing, and I'm sure it scandalized a number of the more reserved theater-goers. That Nedda (wonderfully and expressively portrayed in this version) is pretty saucy! She's the wife of Canio, but she's in love with Silvio. And in the opera, those characters put on a play for the townspeople in which they tell the story of a woman in love with a man other than her husband. Nedda thinks it's just a performance, and doesn't realize that Canio knows the truth about her and Silvio. As with Il Tabarro, things don't end will for the fickle woman and her lover.
Of the two, I think I preferred Il Tabarro, despite the fact that I'm pretty sure half the theater needed a drink or an antidepressant (or both) when it was over. They were both thoroughly enjoyable, but I like ships, so it automatically got bonus points, and I generally prefer the direct over the roundabout and poetic. More bonus points. Both of them totally worth the late night though!
On Sunday night, in the midst of a huge and sudden summer storm, I went with E and her friend L to see Il Tabarro and Pagliacci. We began the evening with lovely meals provided by OTSL - I had the veggie tart with potatoes, asparagus, pasta salad provided by L, a delicious chocolate mint truffle, watermelon, prosecco and Perrier to drink, and some of E's blood orange sorbet at intermission. All simply delightful!
Il Tabarro was performed first, and - man! - was it dark! The plot is simple; there are very few characters. The main players are Michele, a ship owner, Michele's wife Giorgetta, and Luigi, one of Michele's employees. It turns out that Giorgetta has a thing for Luigi, and Michele doesn't take that news very well. It's short, it's dark, it's super intense. And there's a man with a cape.
Pagliacci is nominally less depressing, and I'm sure it scandalized a number of the more reserved theater-goers. That Nedda (wonderfully and expressively portrayed in this version) is pretty saucy! She's the wife of Canio, but she's in love with Silvio. And in the opera, those characters put on a play for the townspeople in which they tell the story of a woman in love with a man other than her husband. Nedda thinks it's just a performance, and doesn't realize that Canio knows the truth about her and Silvio. As with Il Tabarro, things don't end will for the fickle woman and her lover.
Of the two, I think I preferred Il Tabarro, despite the fact that I'm pretty sure half the theater needed a drink or an antidepressant (or both) when it was over. They were both thoroughly enjoyable, but I like ships, so it automatically got bonus points, and I generally prefer the direct over the roundabout and poetic. More bonus points. Both of them totally worth the late night though!
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Pirates of Penzance
My second opera of the year was a Saturday matinee this past weekend. I saw The Pirates of Penzance with my cousin A. Grandpa ended up with three sets of tickets to Pirates, and decided that, while the show is entertaining, twice is quite enough, thank you very much.
And entertaining it is. It's the story, in case you don't know, of a boy named Frederic just completing his accidental apprenticeship to the pirates. He gives up the pirate life - which was never for him anyway - and heads for dry land, where he meets the lovely Mabel. Turns out that, by cruel twist of fate, his apprenticeship isn't actually over, and Frederic must make some tough choices.
This is a Gilbert and Sullivan classic, and the genius is really there. The music is upbeat, the libretto sharp. The show as a whole is fun, sort of the operatic equivalent of Hello, Dolly! But as usual, OTSL did a great job with the staging. I am forever impressed by how well they make things work on their little stage!
And entertaining it is. It's the story, in case you don't know, of a boy named Frederic just completing his accidental apprenticeship to the pirates. He gives up the pirate life - which was never for him anyway - and heads for dry land, where he meets the lovely Mabel. Turns out that, by cruel twist of fate, his apprenticeship isn't actually over, and Frederic must make some tough choices.
This is a Gilbert and Sullivan classic, and the genius is really there. The music is upbeat, the libretto sharp. The show as a whole is fun, sort of the operatic equivalent of Hello, Dolly! But as usual, OTSL did a great job with the staging. I am forever impressed by how well they make things work on their little stage!
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Quote of the Day
"When you stop doing things for fun, you might as well be dead."
-- Ernest Hemingway, True at First Light
-- Ernest Hemingway, True at First Light
Monday, June 24, 2013
Insurgent -- Take 2
After a huge break about halfway through the book, I finally got back to Insurgent and finished it up last week. It's the continuation of Divergent, and picks up the first one leaves off.We left Tris as she struggled to prove herself in her new faction, Dauntless. In Insurgent, the political structures of the country are in shambles (you'll have to read Divergent to find out why), and our heroine Tris discovers that there's a bit of secret information that's remained concealed. Most of the book is her trying to discover where and what that information is.
I got through this with no problem, but I think I liked Divergent better. I'm not sure when the third one is due out, but hopefully it'll get back on its game -- as it was with The Hunger Games: I loved first, was a bit bored with the second, and couldn't wait for the third.
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Goal #25
Goal #25: pass my test.
What kind of test, you might ask? I can't tell you. Well, I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you. So you might want to think again about asking.
Recap of goal #24: okay, let's see how I did:
- Get case for new phone (which I finally got!) - yes!
- Set up lunch with N and J, G&G - yes, and actually had the lunch (really breakfast)!
- Work on car situation - kinda
- Schedule doctor's appointment - yes, and went!
- Make ice cream - no
- Make lemon curd - yes!
- Ride bike - yes!
- Climb - yes!
- Row - no
- Read magazines - I'm getting behind and they're piling up! - no
So...6.5 out of 10. In school that would be failing, but in Major League Baseball, I'd be a Hall of Famer. I'll go with the MLB on this one.
What kind of test, you might ask? I can't tell you. Well, I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you. So you might want to think again about asking.
Recap of goal #24: okay, let's see how I did:
- Get case for new phone (which I finally got!) - yes!
- Set up lunch with N and J, G&G - yes, and actually had the lunch (really breakfast)!
- Work on car situation - kinda
- Schedule doctor's appointment - yes, and went!
- Make ice cream - no
- Make lemon curd - yes!
- Ride bike - yes!
- Climb - yes!
- Row - no
- Read magazines - I'm getting behind and they're piling up! - no
So...6.5 out of 10. In school that would be failing, but in Major League Baseball, I'd be a Hall of Famer. I'll go with the MLB on this one.
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Twelfth Night
Last week, on possibly the most perfect night of the year, T and I went with G&G to see Twelfth Night at Shakespeare Glen in Forest Park. (Full text of the play is available here.)
We arrived early enough to eat lots of delicious snacks. Some we brought: cheese, crackers, dried fruit, wine. Some we bought: nachos, funnel cake, rum sno-cones. Actually, we missed the first couple of minutes of the show because we were waiting in line for the funnel cake - or was it because after too many run sno-cones I forgot how to get to my seat? I can't remember.
Regardless, the Shakespeare Festival has been putting on great shows the last few years, and this year's performance did not disappoint. It was smart and funny and totally enjoyable. And a little crooked!
We arrived early enough to eat lots of delicious snacks. Some we brought: cheese, crackers, dried fruit, wine. Some we bought: nachos, funnel cake, rum sno-cones. Actually, we missed the first couple of minutes of the show because we were waiting in line for the funnel cake - or was it because after too many run sno-cones I forgot how to get to my seat? I can't remember.
Regardless, the Shakespeare Festival has been putting on great shows the last few years, and this year's performance did not disappoint. It was smart and funny and totally enjoyable. And a little crooked!
Friday, June 21, 2013
Champion
On Wednesday night, I went to see the first of what will soon be four operas in a week. Somehow my schedule just worked out that way this year!
The first show was Champion, and it was fantastic. It's a world premiere performance at Opera Theater St. Louis, and E actually got to see the opening show when she was in town last Saturday evening. It's the true story of Emile Griffith, who became world welterweight champion in a title bout that cost his opponent, Benny "The Kid" Paret, his life.
The show was masterfully written, with old Emile, crippled by brain damage, reflecting on the poor choices his younger, uneducated self made during his glory days.
The opera is so complex, covering issues of regret, personal development, forgiveness, homosexuality and homophobia, aging, and the often unpredictable price we pay for our actions. But as both a true and a fairly contemporary story, it brings a certain gravity that I think is lost in some of the more classic operas, just because they seem a little bit unreal.
I've seen some great operas, but the only one that's ever moved me to tears was Madame Butterfly, which I saw at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. At least that was true until this past Wednesday.
The first show was Champion, and it was fantastic. It's a world premiere performance at Opera Theater St. Louis, and E actually got to see the opening show when she was in town last Saturday evening. It's the true story of Emile Griffith, who became world welterweight champion in a title bout that cost his opponent, Benny "The Kid" Paret, his life.
The show was masterfully written, with old Emile, crippled by brain damage, reflecting on the poor choices his younger, uneducated self made during his glory days.
The opera is so complex, covering issues of regret, personal development, forgiveness, homosexuality and homophobia, aging, and the often unpredictable price we pay for our actions. But as both a true and a fairly contemporary story, it brings a certain gravity that I think is lost in some of the more classic operas, just because they seem a little bit unreal.
I've seen some great operas, but the only one that's ever moved me to tears was Madame Butterfly, which I saw at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. At least that was true until this past Wednesday.
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