Dorothy on the Shoulder

[albadger]

Went out this morning to see the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD telecast of Werther, at the Century Hayward -- sadly not featuring yummy Jean-François Borras, but drab, dingy international superstar Jonas Kaufmann (funny how stars always get over whatever they're sick with when there's a camera pointed at them). Opera was nice, though the sound dropped out for the last 10 minutes, giving us elderly attendees a taste of what Silent Opera was like before Sound Opera was invented. But what happened before the show was more interesting still.

I parked in the nearby garage and found myself ambling very slowly to the box office; no surprise, as the Live in HD crowd doesn't move fast... but today I was stuck behind a slow-paced young woman, dressed to today's fashion, a spaghetti-strap top leaving a lot of skin bare. I hoped that she'd be going to the opera as well, and liven the joint up a little, so I didn't push past... but when she got to the box office...

• GIRL: I'd like a ticket to "the Return of Dorothy."


• CLERK: [confused silence] Uh... We're not showing that movie.


• GIRL: No. You are. It started last night. "The Return of Dorothy."


• CLERK: Hold on just a bit... [checks paperwork] I'm sorry, we're not showing that movie.


• GIRL: [Angry silence. Turns away and stalks back to garage.]

I felt bad for her, and curious, so after I got my ticket to Werther, I pulled out my Nexus 4 and tried to look up "the Return of Dorothy." I hardly needed to, as this display was in the hall outside the Live in HD auditorium:

Apparently she'd gotten the month wrong. She was a fan, I could tell.

I could tell because, proudly displayed on her right shoulder, was a huge tattoo of Judy Garland as Dorothy; beneath that, tattoos of the Scarecrow, Tin Woodsman and Cowardly Lion. On her back she had tattooed a poem, which I tried to read as I walked behind her, and seemed Oz-related as well, but it was either read the poem or walk without falling over, and I picked not falling over.

---

Next time: Oscar picks! I'm not sure which year they'll be for, though.

Comments

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

I will never understand that kind of fandom.

[maxauburn.livejournal.com]

Me either!

[albadger.livejournal.com]

I'll tell you what I really don't get, is tattoos of people's faces -- since your skin is always changing, the tattoo is going to change and stretch over the years, and Judy may end up looking more like Bert Lahr.

And then there's the tattoo ON the face, which is an entirely different kettle of fish.

[maxauburn.livejournal.com]

I understand that, right now, getting tattoos is the thing to do. Not for me, no thank you.

[albadger.livejournal.com]

Can't say I "get" it either, but I sympathize... that girl's passion for Oz may be the best, most constant thing in her life, and I say more power to her!

But I also wish her better research skills.

[andybr.livejournal.com]

So it turns out you are a friend of Dorothy? Me too.
I don't really care for Werther. The most interesting thing about it is that Massenet also revised it so a baritone could sing it.

Re Jonas Kauffman - he is coming to Sydney in August for one sold out performance with expensive tickets. At the bear bar in Munich (Eidelweiss I think it is called) we discussed Kaufman and they advised that it was much better to hear him on disc than in the flesh. That made me feel better about missing him!

[albadger.livejournal.com]

Hey, I love my friends but I don't want them stuck to my shoulder for life. ;)

Agreed that Werther is small cheese, though I love the tenor's Act 3 aria. For Massenet I'd much rather see Don Quichotte, which I would be seeing in San Diego -- if I weren't going to be out of the country on a cruise ship through the entire run of the thing! Oh, fate, why are you so cruel.

I've never heard Kaufmann live, but I'm not a fan of the superstar-concert format anyway & would rather hear good singers in full-length work. I do know that a lot of the current star singers are good-looking and have pretty voices, but can barely be heard over an orchestra (Nathan Gunn is the worst offender I can think of off-hand). No idea how Kaufmann's voice carries in person, though the Met audiences seem happy enough with him... on the broadcasts, he sounds baritonal, so it wouldn't be a stretch to have Werther be played by an actual baritone. Like Placido Domingo, perhaps! ;)