Manhattan Moments: Night at the Opera Plus

TULIP TIME Spring in Manhattan usually means a surfeit of tulips.  This year is no exception.  Despite rain and wind which have beaten down some blooms, we still discovered colorful arrays here and there.  In Central Park, in the Jefferson Market Garden, and in the occasional street-side bed.   A NIGHT AT THE OPERA  Our midweek outing was a …

Carolina Comments: Powerful Opera & Noteworthy Fiction

WATCHING: POUNDING OPERA Dead Man Walking (San Francisco Opera streamed) When we lived in San Francisco, we subscribed to the opera, and when we were very lucky, we were invited to sit in the director’s box, close to the stage.  I loved the opera seasons there, mostly because their season always included at least one contemporary opera.  We …

Tidy Tidbits: The Local Scene

  This was a fun week filled with theater, opera, dinners out and in, and long conversations with old and new friends. SMALL SCREEN After war in early 20th century Morocco, I’ve taken up a Kiwi crime series.  The Brokenwood Mysteries (available on Acorn) are set on the North Island in a very small fictional …

Tidy Tidbits: Viewing & Reading

CULTURE NOTES This month, the Sarasota cultural scene re-awakens with orchestra, opera, theater and choral performances.  Not as many as in the new year, but what I’d call a mini-season.  Earlier this week, we had the treat of a session on the costumes for the musical, Evita, being presented by our favorite Asolo Repertory Theater.  …