A trip to the opera
Dec. 5th, 2021 03:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dormouse1953I haven't posted for nearly a year here!
For those that don't know, I had a major health scare in January, what's called an aortic dissection, meaning the lining coming away in the aorta. I had a fairly major operation, which caused a stroke. I was in hospital for nearly three weeks. Still have an impressive scar on my chest. Since then I've been mostly going for walks, reading, and watching television. Not much else to do during lockdown.
But yesterday I went to the opera for the first time in nearly two years, a performance of Wagner's The Valkyrie at English National Opera in London, also my first trip to central London for a while.
It was odd going back. London was much more crowded than I thought it would be. The Coliseum had strict rules about wearing masks in the building (which I kept forgetting, every time I went back in). The bars and programme sellers were card only.
The production was five hours long. Not so much dipping my toe in the water, rather taking a running jump into the Atlantic Ocean. And I'd forgotten how much sitting a theatre seat for a long time can hurt my back. My back was very sore last night.
The performance was great. A pity the production was a bit too minimalist for my tastes.
For those that don't know, I had a major health scare in January, what's called an aortic dissection, meaning the lining coming away in the aorta. I had a fairly major operation, which caused a stroke. I was in hospital for nearly three weeks. Still have an impressive scar on my chest. Since then I've been mostly going for walks, reading, and watching television. Not much else to do during lockdown.
But yesterday I went to the opera for the first time in nearly two years, a performance of Wagner's The Valkyrie at English National Opera in London, also my first trip to central London for a while.
It was odd going back. London was much more crowded than I thought it would be. The Coliseum had strict rules about wearing masks in the building (which I kept forgetting, every time I went back in). The bars and programme sellers were card only.
The production was five hours long. Not so much dipping my toe in the water, rather taking a running jump into the Atlantic Ocean. And I'd forgotten how much sitting a theatre seat for a long time can hurt my back. My back was very sore last night.
The performance was great. A pity the production was a bit too minimalist for my tastes.
