An "Idol" Mind...

Oh, American Idol... I had given you up last season. Having vowed never ever to watch again, I mean ever, after the voting debacle that allowed Chris Daughtry to get the boot and elect Taylor Hicks as winner?? WTF? is that all about? I might add that this is the voting public of America, people, and we are in deep shit. Then again, I think more people voted in the last American Idol finale than in the last Presidential election - what does that tell you?? Maybe we should really adopt that model instead. Okay, everybody, text "HLRY4PREZ" (just as a for instance) or dial 1-900 (pft! didja think we'd get to vote toll free?)-CLINTON (again totally as a for instance)

But sorry, I digress. The point of this post is not to talk politics. It is to talk about American Idol. As I say, I totally gave up watching the show last year as it was getting to be a little too much. Mean, mean Simon, flaky Paula and mellow 'hey-dawg-you-worked-it-OUT' Randy. Too grating. Too predictable. All of the guest artists and theme evenings? There's only so many times I need to hear BeeGees songs -and like, the once is enough. Or Barry Manilow. Yech. So I said "goodbye" to Idol.

And yet... I never saw an episode but I still know who "the winner" was and I know what a Sanjaya Malakaar is (although not necessarily how to spell it) because it seeped into my consciousness. Oh all right, fine, I read it on the internet.

Yesterday, I cracked. I watched an episode - auditions in Miami Florida!! More of same, but I was mesmerized. I don't know if I will watch any more of it - I kind of like watching the auditions.

But really really bad singing is not the same as watching a quality scripted tv show. At the risk of sounding WAY too serious here - I hope the strike ends soon and that AMPTP gets their collective heads out of their collective asses and give these people all of the recognition (and cash) that they deserve. Because, dammit, the last new Ugly Betty aired last week! And there are only 2 new episodes of House left. Without them, I think I am left to turn back to Simon, Randy and Paula. Or I guess I could always take my mom's advice and read a book....

March Madness (and I ain't talking about basketball!)

I just booked my next trip to NYC in March and whew! I'll need a vacation to recover from this whirlwind weekend. I am going out there in late March to see this, this and hmmmm, what else was there? Oh, right... THIS

So. Excited. Because I so.need.a.vacation.

Tutto il mondo e burla...

Meet Sir John Falstaff, a rogue and a scoundrel of a human being with ample girth and a booming baritone. It seems Sir John's gotten himself into a spot of trouble - after stealing a drinking buddy's money and then spending it on (what else?) more drinks - he realizes he hasn't gotten any money of his own left and must come up with a scheme to get some more.

This being opera, of course his scheme involves getting two rich women to fall in love with him and then magically, give him all their money (yeah, I'm not sure about that one either). He writes two identical letters (tsk tsk, Jacko, where's the romance in your soul?) not realizing that the objects of his affection ("Meg" and "Alice") will compare notes and hatch a scheme of their own to teach him a lesson. Of course their scheme involves luring Falstaff into believing Alice is madly in love with him, setting a secret rendez-vous where they are (oh no!) nearly caught by her jealous husband, causing Sir John to hide in the laundry basket and get tossed into the Thames with the rest of the laundry. (For some reason, all of Alice's laundry was white. Lemme tell you, if it was getting tossed into the Thames on a regular basis, her stuff would SO not be white). Sir John's mad for being made a fool of but this does not stop him from falling for another trick - this one involving the Queen of the Fairies and creatures of the forest and a haunted tree (I wish I was making this up) but he sees the error of his ways and repents. There's a wedding (two characters who appear to have stumbled into all this from another opera) and then everyone happily accepts that men are all fools and trot off to dinner. And.... curtain.

Lyric's production of Falstaff was pretty - the set was compact and had trapdoors everywhere and pieces that could be moved into different configurations. The last time Lyric performed Falstaff (I was still at Loyola so maybe 1999 or 2000? Earlier? I never got to see it when he did it and am just kicking myself now.) the title character was played by Bryn Terfel. He sang Falstaff's Act One aria a the Gala concert and stole the show. Andrew Shore (who stepped in for the originally cast Falstaff) had big shoes to fill, but sang the role very well. He was also really funny as Falstaff and was getting all kinds of laughs.

The other members of the cast - Veronica Villarroel (Alice), Boaz Daniel (Ford), Stacey Tappan (Nannetta - and ohmygoodness what gorgeously floated high notes!), Bryan Griffin (Fenton), Meredith Arwady (contralto - last seen in Dr. Atomic - superb), Elizabeth de Shong (Meg), David Cangelosi (Dr. Caius), Rodell Rosel (Bardolfo), and Andrew Funk (Pistola) no "big names" among them (although David Cangelosi is pretty well known in Chicago and also was at the Met in... something... I read the review and he got a good notice). Many of them are members of the Ryan Opera Center for American Artists, Lyric's training program for young singers. All of them did very well - sang like the pros they are and were also decent actors. I basically ignored the plot (you pretty much had to) and the gibbering old biddies behind us (arrghhh! Can i tell you how well behaved the main floor audience is by comparison? Next year - single tickets = better seats! I swear, some of this audience nonsense is really starting to sour the experience for me)

Next up - Eugene Onegin and Barber of Seville...

** Update: so reviews for Falstaff are in today's Tribune and Sun Times and apparently this production had three of its principal singers bow out (the singers playing Falstaff, Ford and Quickly). I had initially thought it was a little strange of them not to have any major cast members, but I guess this is why. Still, it is a great opportunity for the Opera Center members to be on the stage and they were all wonderful. So go! See Falstaff if you can. But for future reference for any potential subscribers - stay away from the upper balcony on Monday nights unless of course you enjoy kabbitzing blue haired biddies blabbing noisily throughout the performance, people taking illegal photography DURING THE PERFORMANCE (curtain calls though I think are fair game) and seat neighbors who unwrap candies or peanut butter sandwiches - during the performance.

the week in quotes...

There were a few memorable moments this past week...

"I don't like the Chicago Tribune. It kind of grosses me out." (Mr. C)

"We're kind of like a bad first date. So, do you like me? Wanna go out for coffee? Do you still like me?" (a colleague, after an extensive two day interview process of an entry level position person for our department)

"You're a little shy, too, aren't you?" (Ms. Renee to me backstage after La Traviata on Wednesday, after I asked her advice on getting over shyness.)

Hey, you... Yeah! You! You're on Notice!

I happened upon this site that generates Stephen Colbert's On Notice signs, after seeing one on this site. I've been amusing myself all week, putting people "on notice." Try it. It's fun. :) So, this one? Is kind of putting the general population on notice...

You Will Be Missed...

Such a shock and a shame. Only a year younger than me...

Here we go again...

Thanks to my friend (and enabler) Heidi and her trusty American Express card, I am already in possession of my Gypsy tickets!

Woo hoo! First of many, people. First. of. Many.

Stuff in my bag....

I have a little weekend ritual where I dump out my work bag before Monday morning and get rid of all the junk. Then I repack it, junk free and voila! It's like a whole new bag. Today I thought I'd share. It's kind of like "stuff in my drawer" but a little more enlightening, since I carry all this crap around every single day.

Here's the list of stuff that lived in my bag all week:

• Ticket to La Traviata (from Monday)


• (almost empty) package of Orbit raspberry mint gum and a great number of wrappers.


• 5 band-aids of varying shapes and sizes


• cell phone (pink razr! pretty!)


• Mini eye glass repair kit (in case I have a screw loose. Ahahahaha)


• plastic spoon (yes, it's a little odd, but in my own defense, we went for like 2 weeks in the office where we didn't have any spoons. Have you ever tried to eat oatmeal with a fork? Very unsatisfactory. So this is my little emergency spoon.)


• Business card case (I saw this advertised in a magazine and had to get it. I am very suggestible.)


• Eye drops


• 3 tubes of Soft Lips gloss (one of them tinted)


• iPod (otherwise known as a Commuter's Best Friend. Red. Pretty!)


• Dr. Feelgood make-up mattifier


• Advil


• 2 Argo tea receipts


• Patti LuPone Live cd (it was cold this week and I didn't want to leave it in the car to freeze)


• Monthly Metra pass (New 10% fare increase goes into effect today! Arrrgh! Bastards! Sometimes this working in the city thing really really sucks.)


• Work ID badge ("All Access" Woohoo!)


• 3 pens (this is kind of like a record for me. Usually I carry about 10 pens on me. I live in fear of one of them not working...Strange because this never ever has happened to me. It's good to be prepared, I guess.)


• Keys (work and car and house)


• Change purse (for train parking lot money. $1.50! To park! Crooks!)


• Parking receipts (it takes every ounce of my early morning pre-coffee brain power to be able to remember my parking spot number as I go from the car to the station. Sometimes this can be a long walk. It is not unusual to see me walking to the station chanting "175! One seven five..." or whatever the number is. It changes every day depending on when I get there. I keep the receipts in case one day I totally screw it up).


• Ear plugs (for noisy train station. They kind of suck so I don't wear them a lot)


• Nasal spray (for raging allergies)


• Extra socks


• Nail file


• Mini-Sharpie (I like to carry sharpies about my person at all times, because you never know, do you.)


• make-up bag (where about 99% of this stuff resides most of the time)


• Wallet
  

So there you have it. Usually I also bring an extra pair of shoes in this bag, and I stow my hat and gloves in there too when I am not wearing them (due to the fact that I tend to lose winter apparel at an alarming rate. This winter I've been pretty good and only lost a scarf.) I also sometimes put in a book or magazine for reading time, or a snack if I'm going to be out and about and have to miss breakfast. I had a cookie in there for a while, from a meeting last week that I forgot about, and so now there are crumbs in there too. There's also usually a generous helping of white cat hair, since the kitty likes to sleep on (and occasionally chew on) my bag (I think he likes the leather).

Weekend Randomness...

Just some things on my mind...

1. It's 4 degrees outside. 4. It's Chicago in January. I know. Still, this weather just makes me want to curl up with a blanket and hibernate until April.

2. Evidence that the events of the past week have just been a little too much and completely drained my brain: was doing laundry this morning and throwing a load of sheets into the washer. That done, I went upstairs to watch Thursday's episode of Ugly Betty that I'd missed. Mom came up to me and said "Uhh, why are you only washing one sheet?" It transpired that I'd only thrown the one into the washing machine (No, not by itself. There was other stuff in there just not the other sheet). The other one was lying, forlorn and abandoned, on top of the hamper. Whoops.

3. One more Traviata (yay!) this week. I am following some advice I overheard at the dress rehearsal - there was a school group from the Music Institute of Chicago and she was passing out notepaper for the students to write down their questions for Renee. "When you go back there and see her, your mind will go completely blank," she admonished them. Sounds about right, actually. I've only just started managing the full sentences around the Fabulous One.

4. Got a google alert for an interview with Patti in the Dallas Voice and have inadvertantly stumbled onto a new career path (maybe?):

The question was: Have you ever done a national tour of musical or would you consider doing one?

The answer was: No, never have. I always thought Broadway is the ultimate — why would I go out on the road? Now I have a son in school and I wouldn’t go on the road until he graduates anyway. But I like touring. I like seeing the country, but it’s uprooting. I’m not young anymore. But I heard about someone who had a packer, a person who was flown in and packed for them, went to where they were going and then unpacked them. That’s fabulous — I want that in my next contract.

Can you imagine? Being a packer for Patti? I'm not suggesting it as a long-range career strategy or anything but it might be kinda fun for a few months (weeks? days? hours?). Of course, if one is looking to put oneself in a workplace drama-less situation, this most likely is not the way to go...

UPDATE: Sunday Afternoon

5. Got a haircut yesterday and ohmygod, my bangs look ridiculous! Just another reason for me to stay indoors, I guess...

6. Last night I almost sprayed my head with eyeglass cleaner rather than my detangling spray. The bottles are the same size. Arrrghhhh. I think I need a vacation....

Nothing to say....

Why can't every day be a Traviata day?? Now I am recovering from a few days of seeing the Diva (back to back!) and totally brain dead due to a bunch of crap happening here on 13 (work! work! drama! work!) I have nothing to say, but I really thought y'all (all 3 of you!) might enjoy feasting your eyes upon the Golden Globe winning Mr. Depp. (Johnny! I'm sorry I ever doubted you!!!)

Master Class

Until today, the only experiences I'd had with master classes involved the class I'd had the chance to observe when I was interning at Lyric (given by tenor Frank Lopardo) and the Terrence McNally play.

Renee's class today was sold out (too late for those who spotted the above blurb in today's Chicago Tribune) and Pick Staiger hall was packed with music students, people who should have been in the office but took the day off to see The Diva (hmmmm), fans, friends and a lot of seniors.

There were four singers - a soprano, mezzo, tenor and bass. Each sang an aria once all the way through and then worked through sections of it with coaching from the Diva. It was interesting to me, because each of the young singers would sing their aria and I'd think "WOW. That was so good!" I couldn't think of a lot of things to correct - but then Renee would start talking and pointing out things that the casual listener wouldn't have even thought of. It made me really understand just how much is going on when you watch an opera singer perform! The breathing, the technique, the interpretation, the actual sound coming from your mouth! Renee is a good teacher. She emphasized that the most important thing for the students was to keep working with their teachers. She was not trying to undo what had been taught, but to give pointers that would help all of them develop as artists. She was funny, too, chatting with the audience and explaining to us about singing and all the preparation singers do. She also did a Q&A session and answered questions.

La Traviata...

Fleming was born to sing Violetta, and she has made this touchstone role her own. She fully inhabits the strong yet vulnerable heroine who sacrifices her happiness and, eventually, her life to preserve the Germont family honor. The diva has mastered the elusive vocal and musical challenges, and knows how to project big emotions on an intimate scale, no small feat in a 3,500-seat theater. (John Von Rhein, Chicago Tribune, 1.14.08)

What else can I say, really? After seeing the dress rehearsal last week, I was very much looking forward to seeing how the whole thing came together in performance. Particularly since Matthew Polenzani, the tenor playing Alfredo, was recovering from a cold and so marked the entire dress rehearsal. I really wanted to hear him sing out, Louise.

But, I am getting ahead of myself. Our evening started with a snowy walk from my office to the Italian Village where mom and I met up with Mary Nell and Tim for a pre-performance dinner. Much risotto was eaten, and much of the strati di cioccolatto a frangelico-soaked chocolate mousse type chocolate covered extravaganza that we split for dessert. Off then to the Civic Opera House where you could just feel the anticipation in the air. Has Renee really not sung a role here since Thais in 2003? Alas, this is the truth. Her six performances of La Traviata are sold out.

Even our seatmates, who we have sat next to for the past 2 years and have never spoken words to, were chatty (the gentleman half of the couple happily commenced to tell my mom his life story, how he was a supernumerary in 1956 and stood on that stage with Renata Tebaldi, etc etc etc) and friendly and excited. Sort of a Renee induced euphoria. The lights dimmed and a Harbinger of Doom appeared on stage in the form of Jack Zimmerman (the Subscriber Relations Manager and Media Services, whose voice you usually hear admonishing the audience to turn off their cell phones and pagers). He only appears if there's been a change in casting. We all held our collective breath - but all three principals were performing. The substitution came for the role of Annina, the maid, and really? Does it matter?

The music for La Traviata had been in my head all day, a kind of little soundtrack for the madness of meetings and other assorted Monday Mayhem. And then, there I was - sitting in the darkened theater with 3500 of my closest friends, listening to the orchestra play the familiar overture... and waiting for my favorite opera diva to take the stage in one of my favorite roles.

Renee was glorious, of course, throughout. She pretty much had the audience in the palm of her hand from the second she started to sing. At the end of the Act I party scene, she is alone in the house and, after a long pause, begins to sing "E strano..." In that pause, she was just totally working it, commanding the stage and not moving a muscle. Every pair of eyes in the house was trained on her, standing there, waiting for her to break the silence. You could have heard a pin drop. At the end of the opera, "Adio del passato" and her final deathbed duet with Alfredo never fails to make me cry.

Matthew Polenzani was a good Alfredo, probably one of my favorites that I have seen in the role. All I could think, when I was watching him was "He can SING! He can SING!" since he'd just marked during the rehearsal.

Thomas Hampson is just so great as Papa Germont. I don't usually pay a lot of attention to the character, just because he's a big baddie who brings about Violetta's sacrifice of Alfredo's love and thus ruins her life, but Mr. Hampson gave such a wonderful performance - singing and acting (and had a seemingly miraculous recovery! A cane he'd been lugging around for scene 1 of act 2 magically disappeared in the second scene!) His aria Di Provenza il Mar just filled the house. Strong, booming and powerful. He got a huge ovation at the curtain call.

But of course we went backstage afterwards. After a minor "I can't find your name on the list" snafu (where do they find some of the people who work back there? It took two of them to figure out how to even read the list in front of them. Then an angel from the production office came out with a clipboard and let us back. Renee was as always, lovely and gracious. She greeted me with a hug and a smile and we had a brief chat. She asked what I was doing now (she even remembered details about my life - ie that I'd interned at Lyric!) and said again how much she loved the flowers we'd sent as a group. Oh, she's just such a classy lady. It was such a wonderful evening.

Today: the Master Class (for which I have to leave in about an hour and a half. I guess I'd better figure out where the hell I'm going, huh?) and then one more performance of La Traviata next week.

La Traviata: Sneak Preview!!

The Diva has Landed! In less than a week, I will be watching Renee in La Traviata from my nosebleed subscription seats (this production is the ONLY reason I subscribed again this year, because tickets to these winter Traviatas were available to subscribers only. Even the single tix, which honestly, Lyric? I think is kind of stinky.) But FIRST, I am going to the closed-to-the-public dress rehearsal this afternoon.

I am SO excited!!!
My favorite soprano, in my favorite opera.... does it get any better??

It's official...

The holidays are over. Everyone's back in school, back to work (and thus I am edged out of the best parking spots at the train station once again). People are taking their decorations down, throwing their trees to the curb , the streets are darkened, as no one is lighting their festive holiday lights anymore. Too much eating means everyone is dieting - and thus no holiday goodies in our kitchen at the office.

January is really a depressing month isn't it?

Anyway, we took our tree down too. We didn't have any other problems with it after that first day when it fell over. I think next year maybe we'll get a fake tree.... probably wouldn't be as much fun for the kitty (who thought his wildest dreams of living in a forest had finally come true!).

Does anyone else find this sort of disturbing?

This snowman is at a house (not mine!) right near the train station, so I drive by him every morning. Just fills you right up with the holiday spirit, doesn't it?

Oh, good! More Drama!

Today's Yahoo Horoscope...

Quickie: Turmoil in one of your friendships is not your fault. They are going through drama.

Overview: You may feel like you need another cup of coffee all day long -- but don't over-medicate! It's just one of those days, so you may just have to deal with a slower pace until tomorrow or the next day.

Fortunately I have my (dunkin donuts) coffee... not the French Vanilla I ordered, but some kind of nut coffee. Whatever. Apparently I will be needing it...

Resolutions?

Just looked at the resolutions from last year. How did I do?

1. Finish the !@&#(#@!** thesis. Be more persistent w/deadbeat advisor and make him be useful to me. It is, after all, his job. Yessss!!!! Done! Graduated!

2. Join some kind of gym and work out more than once a week. Not so much, unless you count walking a million blocks from Union Station to work every day as "joining a gym."

3. Spend less time at Starbucks. Otherwise, I will become VERY finnie-esque and that gym membership will be very handy indeed. What? Starbucks? She asks innocently, sipping her cinnamon dolce latte. Oh, I never go to Starbucks... Although proximity of Dunkin Donuts to new office and discovery of Argo Tea will definitely help me out in 08.

4. Follow my own damn bliss. New job? Possibly. More travel? Most likely. New job? Check! More travel? Check, check, money order!

5. Learn to knit more than long rectangles. I can do scarves. But I've only got one head. I'd like to learn how to purl, and how to do more exciting stitches and make some more interesting things. Ummm. No. Can still pretty much just do rectangles. In knit stitch. But at least I use pretty yarn...

Didn't do as well as I thought, actually. Hmmm. Here is what I am thinking for this year:

1. Be a better friend and a happier, kinder, gentler, more extroverted person.
2. Work out more. Be healthier (which might help me be happier.)
3. Learn. To. Purl. (this will be my year!)
4. Explore my entertainment options in Chicago - see more shows!
5. Limit the latte intake - which will save me pounds AND dollars (because DAMN! Buying anything down here is so very expensive.)
6. My mom would love for me to add "Save my money" so I will - but I will also add "for Diva trips" which is probably not what she had in mind...