Lady of Leisure at Lincoln Center-Part 2

Backstage at the Met

After the Open Rehearsal at the New York Philharmonic, I went to the beautiful new Apple Store on Broadway to ask a question about my iPhone and then indulged in an extravagent lunch at Fiorellos. Eating alone is no longer a problem when one can discretely read the New York Times on an iPhone. Having profiteroles for dessert after reading about the devastation in Haiti is a problem and I hope an online donation to the Red Cross made some amends.

Back across the street to the beautiful building at the left (center) of the photo above-the Metropolitan Opera House- for a backstage tour. These tours have a great reputation but I've never had the time to go at 3:30 p.m. on a weekday in New York.. at last I do. The Met is phenomenal and my admiration has grown over the past several years as a result of the HD performances and our increased attendance at the opera. This 90 minute tour took me (and 14 others) backstage into the vast labyrinth of non-stop design, construction, fittings, prop set-ups and "tear-downs", practice, and performance. The building is open 24 hours a day, six days a week and something is always in motion. While we were there they were moving sets from Stiffelio and Turandot and Boccanegra and the sets from Carmen and der Rosenkavelier were off to one side. In the crowded corridors I saw long racks of costumes for the upcoming Hamlet and in the workshop they were painting the palm trees for the new production of Armida. Mind you the palm trees were turquoise blue. Someone was practicing a scene from Stifelio in the practice room, and the wig for Carmen was being spruced up in the wig room. The career counselor in me was fascinated by the number of workmen (and women) who were shuffling scenery on wheeled carts, or painting scenery, or working with electrical wiring. What a great job, lots of variety every day. We only got glimpses of the HUGE stage and five (?) story tall proscenium because every time we tried to enter-from stage left, stage right, backstage, the crew were scurrying around with sets and backdrops. There were 90 minutes worth of discoveries, too much for this blog, so I'll just highlight a few more:

• Dressing rooms for the stars are very simple. About the size of the 3 cubicles that Holly, Susan and I shared. The "stars" like Renee Fleming have to keep their personal belongings in a locker (like the ones at Helen Newman) because only the evening's performer can use the dressing room. They have a dressing table, a small sofa for guests, a small piano for warm ups. I couldn't tell if they even had a bathroom but they must. On Saturday's the matinee performer has to get out at a certain time to accommodate the evening performer. We visited the tenor's room and Roberto Alagna's humidifier was on the floor, with magic marker citing his ownership.
• The stage is a city block deep. We traveled up and down the floors backstage in an elevator and I think there were 7 floors. I tried to get my facts confirmed on the web, but couldn't find a general site that told all these dimensions.
• The backstage is very, very crowded. With seven performances a week and sometimes 200+ performers on stage (not to mention about 100 in the orchestra pit) every available space is used to store something. When you see the Met in HD it often looks like there is a large, empty space on stage as they set up the next scene. Yet the 15 of us were scrunched by the door leading onto the stage and I wondered how the 200 members of the chorus would amble on so casually while singing.
• The largest repertory theatre in the world. 4000 seats. Perfect accoustics. The singers do not use ANY amplification and yet I can attest to the fact that one can hear them from the Grand Tier as clear as if you were in the same apartment . The students who accompanied us, from a small liberal arts college, seemed blase during most of the tour. But when we stepped into the theatre (they had never attended a performance) and they saw the size of it their mouths dropped open.
• I think I see a familiar face rush past me and into and practice room. When I check the website my suspicions are confirmed. It was Michael Fabbiano, who was in "The Auditions" last year (Donna Fleming will know who I mean). He has his Met premiere this week in Stiffelio. I feel like I know this young man.
• Tonite I am going to see Der Rosenkavalier in a standing room only "seat" because it is the last performance of the season and I wanted to hear Renee Fleming and Susan Graham. Several years ago in der Rosenkavalier they brought two dogs onstage who were supposed to be the pets of the Marschallin (the heroine). When the dogs got on stage they started to fuck and had to be separated by a stagehand with a big stick. The NY Times took a photo and a hue and cry went up about the Met's cruelty to animals. This bullet is one of my tests to see if you are reading my blogs. Our tour guide said the were "making love" but I want to make sure you are reading this.
• There are no right angles at the Met, because right angles are bad for accoustics. Luciano Pavarotti used to always take a right angled nail on stage for good luck. My tour guide gave me one at the end of the tour.

Tonight I am going to try to buy tickets for myself 4 more operas (The Nose, Hamlet, Attila, and Armida) using my Johnson School retirement gift certificate in addition to the four for which Greg and I already have tickets (La Boheme, Aida, La Traviata, and der Fliegende Hollander. Guess you can tell that I am really hooked on the Met this year! For may fellow fans, if you want to come take the tour I'd gladly do it again with you.