way2fractious, and yours truly had the pleasure of escorting The Flame-Haired Celtic Amazon Goddess to the San Franciso Opera's presentation of Giuseppe Verdi's "Macbeth" this past Sunday.
The War Memorial Opera House was very grand and the staging of the opera was very modern with some interesting symbolism with the blocking and set design. Some of which I thought worked very well, and some didn't (the use of dirt which sounds odd when describing an opera worked really well for instance).
Baritone Thomas Hampson was wonderful in the title role, but the standout performance came from Noah Stewart who was supposed to play Malcolm but took on the role of MacDuff due to a mid performance replacement. He stole the show and recieved thunderous applause. During the curtain call Mr. Hampson walked over to him and raised his fists in mock anger before congratulating him.
Here are a few pictures from our evening.
The F-H.C.A.G. and I ready to head up to San Francisco
The Opera House
After the Show
In sharp conrast to Rollerboy_1979 w2f and I received nothing but compliments at the opera house, including an exclaimation of "Ya look Grand!" from a Scottish usher!
None of us had ever attended an opera before but we are all resolved that we shall go again. It was a really enjoyable experience and something that I think most people should try to see at least once in their life.
Cheers
Jamie
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