Opera In The Park

     My mother is a huge fan of opera. Youthful memories of opera programs on the old Grundig radio with the volume turned up full blast while Mom ironed clothes are easily summoned. And for a few years when we were old enough to sit still but not old enough to rebel, Mom would take some of her younger kids to an opera matinee annually to raise our appreciation of the arts. 
     Didn't she know that our art consciousness was being raised every Saturday morning while watching Bugs Bunny cartoons?  Mel Blanc must have been a huge fan of opera as some of the more memorable episodes featured operatic numbers.  What about TV commercials?  Pasta commercials would feature some Italian favorite aria on occasion.  And a true American commercial advertising icon, the No More Rice Krispies ad, cemented at least one opera song into the minds of even the least cultured among us.  [Go ahead, click on those links to enjoy these old favorites yourself.]  
     Wisely, Mom picked operas that were sung in English and contained a fair amount of comedic relief.  And all of us were amused by 'young lovers' portrayed by some two-ton Tessie tiptoeing coyly behind a trellis while her eighth of a ton beau bounded after her.  We sat, we saw, we survived the cultural indoctrination.

     Fast forward to the Opera In The Park, a 50th anniversary gala performance of the West Australian Opera company last night. [50 years! Perth is not a fishing village, thank you.]  It was the annual free concert held on the Supreme Court Gardens, a huge grassy area lying between the Swan River and the skyscrapers of the central business district. Simulcast to country towns that have limited access to opera, there are also large screens for the huge crowds to get a close-up view of the action on the stage.  Being a "gala", many people dressed to the nines or in costume...to sit on blankets on the ground.  I missed this rare opportunity to wear a sparkly sequined cape and fascinator. DRATS.  The capacity crowd makes one wonder: is opera (or opera curious) this big in Western Australia?  I think the "free" tag brought in more than a few thrifty souls, but that's OK.  People can nibble at the product for free and then maybe want to take a bigger bite by buying a ticket to an upcoming season performance.
    

Opera In The Park Instagram

     The program was a predictable mix of opera's greatest hits and this is OK, also.  People may not recognize the name of the piece but may certainly recognize the tune (thank you, Bugs).  For those keeping score, some of the line-up included: Don Giovanni, Rigoletto, Carmen's Toreador Song, Il Trovatore Anvil Chorus, the Lakme duet, Tosca and Turandot's Nessun Dorma. The latter I've heard so many times I can sing it myself. The featured singers did  a fine job on a cool night and the chorus was as diverse as the audience.  Opera has moved away from the bigger-is-better mentality but the cameras couldn't hide the ages of the 'young lovers'  or what must have been some of the original chorus members.  And this too is OK. What was onstage reflected what was in the audience.  A nice touch was the encore, "With hope in your heart...you'll never walk alone" by Rogers and Hammerstein.


     And my annual arts appreciation commitment fulfilled, Mom.

 
 

Public Art Space in Perth

     I wrote about public art way back in 2009, Community Art,  because I was impressed how "a fishing village" (as someone from the eastern states referred to Perth) embraced the intangible delights and merits of public art projects.  The widespread employment of sculpture and artistic venues has never struck me as an inferiority complex kind of reflex but seen as having genuine value.  If you take a quick look at  Community Art , you'll see some of my basic shots on my Hannah Montana camera with its CIF (Crap, In Fact) resolution and understand how I was initially  impressed.

Cultural Center Beach

    Fast forward five years and you'll notice the upgrade in photography and in public art projects. I rather wonder if people sometimes complain under their breath that money spent making public spaces artsy wouldn't be better spent on relief projects for the impecunious.  Speaking  for the close-to-broke set, I like having a happy place to go to and enjoy for free.  As green space gets eaten up by cement and chrome buildings, it's nice to have a refuge.

Cultural Center Ice Rink

Penguins to the rescue

The Cultural Center, comprising the Art Gallery, Museum, State Library, Institute of Contemporary Arts, public garden and State Theatre , has a big open space which has been alternately  been turned into a beach complete with sand, umbrellas, "changing houses" and a free book cart.  Fast forward a few months and for the first time, Perth had an outdoor ice rink! A half hour ice time plus ice skates cost a fortune in this case but it never went wanting. People,  likely just about every northern hemisphere expat and a few natives ,  flocked to this opportunity to ice skate outside.  This rink was up for just a couple of weeks, but it was a success.  I spotted no Zamboni but lots of stabilizing penguins for youngsters for the easy Dorothy Hamill effect.

Yarn bombing bike racks

     It all sounds a bit brutal, but flash mobs and (blank) bombings are oh so popular. And the knitting nerds have joined the fun.  Mobilized by the city library, the local knitting circle and terrorist society made colorful covers for the bike racks on St George's Terrace--the main road in the CBD. Many are still holding up after several months.  I just love the whimsy.  I appreciate the whimsy that many Perth International Arts Festival public art installations provide. 

    Life just needn't be all Stalin-block gray and gloomy.  Bring on the balloons, bubbles and grins!