ARIA SERIOUS?

Fans of opera will soon be able to watch complete performances of opera from Covent Garden while basking in the warm loving glow of their computer monitor. As part of a complete website redesign , the Royal Opera House will make Don Giovanni available as a free download. I've always admired the Royal Opera House -- they do some excellent productions but where I'm really impressed is how they use technology to reach audience members. One of the first Opera Companies to offer podcasts and establish their presence on YouTube, their usage of technology is a pefect example of how a Company can use these tools to enhance the audience experience. But I'm not sold on watching opera on my computer. I spend 10+ hours a day in front of a computer. This is why I go to see live theatre. A computer is the last place I want to spend my downtime. Still, Royal Opera House spokesperson Tony Hall commented "we're very excited by the potential this offers in terms of attracting newc...

Friday again, so its time to ask, what are you listening to this weekend? Yours truly is flying home this weekend so you can soon expect posts to return with regularity and I apologize for the cobwebs that have formed these past few weeks. Once I get home I'll be listening to this recording of Don Giovanni I happened to find for sale at a flea market in Mexico featuring our dear friend Ferruccio Furlanetto. Amazing what you can discover if you just stop long enough to look. So, what are you listening to this weekend? -Edward

No. I didn't come up with the headline. It is taken from the British tabloid The Sun who recently ran this article about Don Giovanni . The article, aptly called "Sex, death, booze, bribery, revenge, ghosts ... who said opera is boring?" is the type of coverage I love to read and I think opera deserves. They're right of course, opera is not boring, and in the right hands it can be a transcendent experience. But then if you're reading this, you already know this fact. Still, it is refreshing to see this type of coverage, and the headline got me thinking about other tabloid spiced headlines that can be used to describe various operas. Soldiers in Sick Girlfriend Swap ( Cosi fan tutte ) Two-Timing Tom Ditches Wife for Bearded Lady ( The Rake's Progress ) Crazy Step-Mother in Baby-Killing Nightmare ( Jenufa ) Raucous Russian Czar Loses Mind, Crown ( Boris Godunov ) So have it, and post your best tabloid opera headlines here. -Edward