Why Is It Important To Attend An Opera?

When first arriving at the Lyric Opera of Chicago I had no idea what to expect as it was my very first time attending an opera. My friends and I found our seats and waited patiently for the act to begin. I was immediately surprised when the opera did not start off right after the announcement was made that signaled the start of the performance, but instead, the first eight minutes consisted of music played by the orchestra pit. When the actors made their appearance on stage they automatically gave off a tone of humor that was prevalent throughout the show. The stepsisters and Don Magnifico were amusing because their characters only cared about the wealth that came with prince and because of this they tried too hard to try to impress him. The other element that added another twist of humor was the fact that the king was actually disguised as …show more content…
During the many Recitatives I believe there was a use of a harpsichord, however, I could not make out a cello to make up the Basso Continuo. I also noticed that the orchestra expressed the many movements of the people or the mice by plucking the stringed instruments or even by the use of the brass section for the movements of Don Magnifico. At one point, a large sheet of what seemed to be tin and some spinning device was used to recreate the sounds of thunder and the wind during a scene where a storm was occurring. Lastly, I noticed towards the ending when everyone found out the hoax of the prince and valet, that they began to sang a round which stressed the design of a spider’s web and the many repeated movements. Overall, I thought that the opera was a fantastic experience filled with humor and was surprisingly easily understood despite the Italian context. I was thoroughly impressed with the actors’ ability to project their sound and I cannot wait to see another opera