Rigoletto Simulcast

Now catching up on some interesting italophile things that have gone on during the last month or two. One outstanding one was a simulcast of the San Francisco Opera production of Rigoletto on September 15th. The venue was AT&T park, San Francisco’s spectacular new (well, newish) baseball stadium. Once a year there is a simulcast of an opera production to the giant screen at the ballpark. I had never gone. Indeed I hadn’t even known that this was going on. Someone brought it to my attention and the price was right – free. So I went with a close friend. It was nothing short of spectacular. The viewing was better than I have ever had at a live performance. You could clearly see and hear the characters in closeup (sometimes too close actually) but still is was an incredible experience. The crown almost completely filled the stadium including seating on the infield. I don’t remember the numbers but there were on the order of 25,000 opera lovers in the “house”.

I would advise a couple of things for those wishing to go. First of all, you can sign up early which gets you slightly early entry into the park – a good idea. Second, bring some food and drink. You must be aware of the rules, especially for drink but they are stated clearly. Thirdly, dress warmly. It’s not for nothing that San Franciscans have sweaters for sale in the middle of the summer. Heavy jack, scarf, hat and gloves are all reasonable measures. Finally take BART (the local subway) and walk the mile to the park and back. Enjoy!

 

 

This entry was posted on Friday, November 16th, 2012 at 5:40 pm and is filed under Culture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.