I had booked a seat for Donezetti’s Maria Stuarda in the magnificent Teatro San Carlo which was just 5 minutes walk from my digs, but I still managed to be late.
Maria Stuarda is tragic opera with a story loosely based on the lives of Mary Queen of Scots (Mary Stuart) and her cousin Queen Elizabeth I, [1]and although they confront one another, the two Queens, in fact, never met. Sung in Italian there are plenty of references to Dio. They spent most of the Second Act asking God to get involved in one way or another; for redemption, for forgiveness, for permission, will he accept her in heaven, will Liz change her mind about the execution – of course she won’t. It’s a bit like watching the Titanic movie, you know what’s going to happen. But no blood or gore in this show, not a chopping block or axe in sight – it’s all about the pathos – it’s pretty dark, and I loved it.
Interesting how they use microphones for the orchestra and singers, about 20 tiny condensor mics scattered about, lots of those super expensive NEUMANN KM183s – only NZ$1,200 each, (this is a research business trip, remember)
Naples is a wonderful place to wander around, a labyrinth of alleyways, it’s a bit filthy and run down, but so charming and this morning I went out for a coffee and returned 4 hours later thinking I should get a Maradona shirt, but on the other hand, it might be one of those things you look at when you get home, and think,‘ . . why the hell did I buy that?’
