A night at the Opera

Sometimes, it pays to know people in the right places.

Or have a friend with amazingly good luck.

This friend of mine was offered Opera tickets from friends of hers that go regularly, but couldn't make the performance this particular weekend. In addition, they offered the hotel room they booked as a belated birthday present.

Sweet.

So last minute I was invited to a weekend at the opera.

My first thought was "What do I wear?!" I'm not much of a clothes horse, but do have some nice black pieces, dash it up with a little jewelry and I'm ready to go.

We left home early Saturday afternoon, hoping to check in the hotel and grab the Metra into Grand Central Station, only a couple of blocks away from the performance.

"It's gonna be tight," said my friend. "We'll really have to boogie."

And boogie we did. We couldn't have planned it better, stop at the hotel, check in, run to the room and fight with pantyhose, shoes and deciding what are we going to risk taking downtown, run back to the car (the hotel room was WAY on the other side), and head to the closest Metra station and arrive just as the train was pulling up.

Our adventure begins.

The ride on the Metra was shorter that we expected (45 minutes) and we hoped to spend the extra time looking for a nice place to eat. No such luck.

I didn't know that most of Chicago businesses downtown pull up their sidewalks at 5 p.m. over the weekend. And we didn't know the area well enough to search for a popular watering hole. So we headed back to Grand Central Station to eat at one of the kiosks there. (And take in the local "color")

As a reporter, I've worked to overcome my reluctance to bother someone with a question, or find it odd when someone asks me a question.

"Wow, are those your real nails? Do you take anything to make them that long." (Mom, are you listening? Your habitual nail biter just received a compliment on her nails!)

My response? "Just vitamins"

This launches us into a full discussion about nails and other people with long nails. My weirdness meter didn't go off (maybe it should of) and my girlfriend decided she was sticking beside me. The discussion ending with him wanting to take a photo of my nails. Not just one, but several. (My weirdness meter didn't really go off until after the third photo) In for a penny, in for a pound. I wasn't too worried about a physical confrontation, but obviously this man has a fingernail fetish. (He also shared several photos of other nails, which were so spectacular, it made mine look anemic.) He was clean, nicely dressed and well-spoken and my girlfriend and I laughed about the experience throughout dinner. (Chinese, yummy.)

Finally the theatre. We were seeing La boheme at the Civic Opera House sung by the Lyric Opera of Chicago. The large block building was built in 1929, right in the middle of downtown Chicago. My fingers were itching for my camera, usually with me, but I had decided to leave it safely at home. The evening was cool and clear. So many wonderful images, Chicago can be so beautiful at night.

Entering the Opera house, the foyer in gleaming fall coloring, we showed our tickets and entered the buzzing crowd. Several small booths of refreshments lined the walls, wine and water served in glass goblets. Downstairs held the main bar, seats and the bathrooms. After scouting the area and the attendees, we headed early for our seats.

We were on the main floor, right behind the first section. Regular patrons asked after my girlfriend's friends and she assured them that they would be back later in the season. Several ladies were dressed in velvet Opera capes and most of the men were in suits or tuxes, but I did see a few jeans (both on men and ladies). I thought I saw Dennis Miller, but I was mistaken.

For the uninitiated, the Opera is completely sung (no spoken lines) and usually in Italian. For an added benefit for the linguistically challenged (like me) a screen with subtitles hung over the stage. Personally, I thought the subtitles distracted from the performance, but there were several musical jokes that I wouldn't have gotten without knowing Italian (or reading the subtitles).

The performance was superb, the acting excellent. I would love to come back another time. My girlfriend enjoyed the performance, but wouldn't want to attend regularly.

Our ride back was uneventful and we were cozied up in our room by midnight. The next day was anticlimactic as we visited a couple of friends and headed home.

A marvelous chance to expand my horizons.