Verna Shultz Halpain
Seattle Opera’s production of La Boheme made me cry. I love this opera about bohemian artists in Paris for several reasons. One is that it reminds me a real-life bohemian close to my heart. Read More
ByGD
Opera for Kids: Heron and the Salmon Girl
A picture of the set, taken from Seattle Opera’s FB page because of technical difficulties related to my cell phone.
At the end of my rant about holding on to my own aesthetic standards in the face of a sanitized kid-friendly worldview, I gave opera as an example of music that really didn’t work for kids. I ate my words at Seattle Opera’s performance of La Cenerentola, a Cinderella story that both of my daughters would have enjoyed completely. About the same time, I won a Twitter contest for tickets to see Heron and the Salmon Girl. Read More
ByGD
In Which I Love Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Roméo et Juliette Immoderately
You kiss by the book(let)
Since the invention of the kiss, there have been five kisses that were rated the most passionate, the most pure…this one left them all behind.
This line from The Princess Bride kept running through my head during Roméo et Juliette at Pacific Northwest Ballet. Since I first saw ballet, there have been four instances that left the others behind. Read More
ByGD
GOJIRA! GOJIRA DA YO! (at Studio Seven)
Caressing strings
After (not) seeing the first two bands at Studio Seven, I knew that I couldn’t just listen to Gojira when they played Studio Seven. I had to see the stage. I unloaded camera and coat on long-suffering spouse who camped against a pillar. It had been a long time since I worked my way through a crowd like that, so I was out of practice with the “This small girl pushing past you is so harmless you’ve already forgotten her,” mind trick. Plus, the Gojira fans were notably protective of their space. I made it as far as the next pillar before a group of very tall guys blocked my way. Currents of aggression swirled through the crowd. Read More
ByGD
The Atlas Moth and Devin Townsend at Seattle’s Studio Seven
Insomnium opening for Epica at El Corazon
It seems like I’m always most interested in the opening bands. I flew to L.A. to see Amorphis open for Nightwish, I saw Epica because Insomnium was opening, and I bought tickets to see Lamb of God last summer because Gojira was on the bill. I finally got to see Gojira at Studio Seven a couple days ago. The Atlas Moth and Devin Townsend opened. With a line-up of this quality, I thought the openers deserved their own post. Read More