The stage for Zeffirelli’s production of Verdi’s Aida in the Arena of Verona is dominated by two large statues of ancient Egyptian pharaohs (rulers), which between performances are stored out in front of the Arena on the Piazza Bra. Here are some more of the stage elements for Aida in Read More …
In this daytime photo you can see the various seating categories in the Arena of Verona. The most expensive seats look white in the photo because they are protected during the day by heavy white plastic covers. These are the “Poltronissime” seats or first sector stalls, now subdivided into “Poltronissime GOLD” Read More …
If you are sitting on the steps (reserved or unreserved) for an opera performance in the Arena di Verona, don’t forget to pick up a candle from the large unmarked box in the middle of the gate where you go in. These are small candles like the ones used on Read More …
There were three intermissions during the Aida performance, two during Carmen and one during Madama Butterfly. Before each intermission (‘interval’ to you) there is a ritual in which the singers take their bows from the center of the stage, then all walk over to the right side and bow again, Read More …
Here on the shore of Lake Constance (Bodensee) at Bregenz, Austria, is the open-air opera venue where the Bregenz Festival is held every summer. On the grandstand there are 6800 seats for us spectators, surrounded by over 600 loudspeakers that are part of a sophisticated sound system called “BOA — Read More …
Oblivious to the religious conflicts of previous centuries, and to the stray tourists who are still walking around looking at the ruins, stage hands from the City Theater have started putting up chairs in the castle courtyard for the evening’s open-air performance of the comic opera L’elisir d’amore (The Elixir Read More …