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Here’s our Opera Set!  Too bad it’s over now…

Picture from my Birthday!  Josh, Elly, and I went out before the Solisti concert!  

Here are a few more pictures from this week!  The first is the Teatro Nuovo.  This is a pic from the stage, where I sang last night…with full orchestra.

The second is a Mercedes-Benz Fire truck.  They were called because a construction site was smoking, but everything turned out alright.  

Interesting story:  There are no fire curtains in Italian theaters.  This is a standard feature for all American houses.  A fire curtain is a large, flame-retardant curtain that hands in front of the grand drape (the pretty one), with a one time release mechanism, to help contain fires.  It’s mainly to protect audiences, not actors. 
However, instead of having fire curtains, Italian firemen are present backstage at ALL theater events.  Is it more crowded?  Yes.  But ultimately safer for everyone?  Also yes. 

This is the view from the top of Assisi overlooking the countryside.  It’s a gorgeous town, but then again, so is Spoleto.

I decided to stay in this weekend and rest.  The next two weeks are going to be wonderfully busy! 

This is The Basilica San Francesco, in Assisi.  It’s absolutely beautiful on the inside.  Many of the original frescoes are still intact, if a little faded.

This has been an entertaining week!  

Rehearsals for the opera are well underway, and we’ve already staged through the first two scenes…about fifteen minutes of music.  My recitative and duet with Ryan are on their feet, and I’m gradually getting ahold of the italian.  There’s an entire flavor to the language that can’t be taught; it has to be experienced.  It’s a lot of fun to wander the streets and hear people talk with one another.  

Last night, I stopped by Caffè degli artisti for some red wine after a long rehearsal.  A large group of old italian men were also there.  One was an old tenor, and he had a decent voice—he wasted no time in allowing everyone in the piazza del mercato to hear him.  Calling Marcello, the tenor, a ham, would have been an understatement.

Somehow, I managed to get sucked into this circle, and by and by, we all figured out that I was a baritone.  They couldn’t speak English, and my Italian isn’t much to speak of, but we all had a good time anyway.  We sang Bohème together and some Verdi.  We also talked about why the Italian vocal technique was superior to the German technique…and about le belle donne.   All in all, I’d say it was one of the more entertaining moments I’ve had on this trip.

The above pictures are from a local bakery/gelateria and dinner a few nights ago, respectively.  The food here, as “unhealthy” as it might seem, is all locally sourced and devoid of chemicals.  Also, Spoleto is one big hill, so I’ve had no troubles keeping the food off of my waist.  

No one drives a car here.  I like it.