La bohème

Today's Metropolitan Opera broadcast of Puccini's La bohème was great. The singing was great. The Franco Zeffirelli production was mind-boggling. This time even the camera work was good. They didn't keep us looking only at the principals. In the Café Momus scene they let us see a lot of the activity that was going on around the lovers. And it's a good thing I had my tissues. The end really gets my eyes and nose running no matter how many times I've seen or heard it.

The first time I saw La bohème was at the Santa Fe Opera. One day I was in the Mesa Public Library and ran into one of my little high school group who said she and her mother were going to the opera that night and her father wasn't going to be able to make it. She asked if I wanted to use his ticket. Well, yes, I'd like to see the opera.

So they picked me up that evening and we saw the opera. On the way home we talked about how it affected us. When they dropped me off it was time to settle the bill.

I had thought that it was a situation where they had a spare ticket that they didn't want to go to waste and they had found a friend who would appreciate being treated to the opera. But no, it was a situation where they found a buyer. They didn't make that clear when the offer was made. (I think I had enough money with me. Maybe I had to settle later.)

I'm surprised they didn't ask for gas money as well.