My first ever "Opera" experience

"So are you guys coming?" our friends inquired.
I looked at my husband and he shrugged, "It's free. Let's give it a try. At least we'll get to see the inside of AT&T Park. I doubt we're ever going to go for a game."
"True," I chimed in. I know squat about baseball. And even though my husband knows the rules, neither of us are fans. So I dragged my lazy self off the couch, dressed warm in a sweater tunic, boots and my winter coat (yes, that's the attire for a regular September evening in San Francisco), and we made our way to the Park along with thousands of other pedestrians who seemingly were headed the same way.

There were hoards of people who had lined up for the SF opera, showcasing 'Rigoletto' on the big screen that evening. Honestly, I did not understand what the fuss was all about. To me, an Opera consisted of actors with high-pitched voices who sing their way through the entire act. "Why don't they just orate like other actors do and spare everyone the shrillness?" was a question I often asked myself. Well, I was going to find out today. It's good in a way that we decided to go for it; at least now we would have an experience to back us up when we tell everyone why we're not opera fans.

We made our way up into the stands, and what I saw when we entered left me dumbfounded. The grandeur of the lit up park holding thousands of spectators with the backdrop of the ocean was indescribable. We took our seats amongst thousands of others and waited patiently for it to begin. Going through the synopsis was absolutely necessary if I wanted to understand anything about the story at all. It was after all going to be sung in Italian. There were 3 acts and I was reaching the end of the third page when I caught my husband fiddling with his phone checking out some deals for electronics. "Don't you want to read this and know what it's all about?" I asked. "I gave up somewhere... here." he said to me nonchalantly, pointing at the third line of the first page. I shook my head and continued to read anyway.

And, it began. People around us were prepared with boxes of food and drinks, and that prompted me to check for the duration of the opera. 2 hours 35 minutes. 2 hours 35 minutes?! Maybe the aim is to go on till their throats are sore.

So the court jester Rigoletto apparently is hated by all the courtiers for ridiculing them and their lives and everything about and around them. Court jester. Really? How did that position even come up in court? And how would they apply for it? Poking fun at people for a living. Lame. He and the Duke are both cursed by this old man Monterone, because the Duke seduced his daughter (who apparently was married, and it was not her loyalty to her husband but his presence in court that kept her from flirting with the Duke; one promiscuous lady I must say), and Rigoletto made fun of him when he was arrested. All the courtiers as a plan of revenge kidnap Rigoletto's daughter, thinking she is his mistress. Yeah, why not. This ugly little hunch back would strike so lucky as to have a pretty young mistress. Well he could too. I fail to grasp how attraction worked in those days. The Duke was ugly, believe me, and he would get any lady he wanted! Maybe it was the money.. or his power.. okay, moving on. So his daughter is called Gilda. Her parents must have really hated her to name her that. Did they think they were having an 89 year old? And she and the Duke are in love with each other! Apparently they have seen each other in church and their 'eyes have met' and they fell in love. So, this Gilda.. .naive? Maybe. Stupid? Definitely. Okay, so after she is kidnapped and brought to the Duke in court, she and her father have this moment wherein she tells him all. That honestly was heart wrenching; the father-daughter scene. I would have been moved to tears if they were actually talking and not singing about it. The high pitched "Faaaather Aaaiiii love hiiiiiiim" in Italian didn't really tug at my tear glands. The end was tragic. Very. Rigoletto is furious at the Duke and hires an assassin to kill him. Unaware of this plot, Gilda is taken to the inn where the Duke is, and sees him flirting with the assassin's sister. She is heartbroken; but despite his betrayal, she still loves him and sacrifices her life to save him. Foolish foolish lady. This is how Monterone's curse is fulfilled. Scary. 

To sum it up, I was actually not bored at all! Yeah okay, those italicized sentences I typed in the paragraph above were actually in my head at the time I was viewing the opera, but it was a great effort and a nice way to spend the evening. My husband begged to differ though, and I did catch him fiddling with his jacket zipper multiple times during the show, which according to him was more interesting.

On our way out, I eyed the soy patty burger in my hand and noticed I had downed almost the whole thing. Soy patty. Eew. I really must have been engrossed watching the opera to have finished that. Proof enough, Rigoletto gets a thumbs up from me!