The Opera

Timisoara is near the border of Serbia. There is an opening of an opera and several of us decide to go. As Meghan put it, "We are at a Romanian Opera House watching an opera being sung in Italian with Romanian subtitles about an American and a Geisha in Japan in 1895 by Romanian actors." And so begins a marvelous production of Madama Butterfly.

The Opera House is at the far end of Piata Victoriei and so we must join the promenade to the opening of Madama Butterfly. Everyone is dressed in their Sunday best, ready for an extravaganza.

The proscenium is built for the opera with its huge scenery and larger than life characters. Above the arch is an invitation to the audience. It says, "Huge scenes, life changing. Come, See, Listen." Apparently, the Romanians have been reading their Shakespeare.

This is a traditional theatre with the royal boxes rising up alongside of the stage. They are intricately carved and gilded, offering a bird's eye view of the production. The loges above the main floor have the same intricate embeliishments. Above the ceiling is decorated with vibrant frescoes. Amazing that such a fabulous theatre remains in a country with such abject poverty.

The conductor appears and the overture begins. We are transcended into Japan of the late 1800s. The actors arrive on stage and the opera begins in earnest. It is interesting listening to a language I do not know with subtitles in another language I barely understand telling a story I do know. The actors move about the stage in costumes that seem to waft the very essence of Japan into the house. The theatrics are every bit as good as New York theatre.

It is over all too soon and we are carried out into the nighttime otherworldliness of the Piata with the crowd. We turn to head back for a late light ice-cream before calling it a night.