In addition to my play-seeing experience last Sunday, I went to see an opera today.

It was a dress rehearsal for La Traviata at the Benedum Theater (with Hari, Elizabeth the cdf instructor, Marina, Jessica, Shannon, Sam, and Alex). Free tickets from a fellow student in the masters program. Because I came directly from class, I had my bulky backpack (with a bulky binder and my laptop) and my Nikes (because I hate walking around campus in dress shoes). The theater was elegant.

Yes, it was yet another event that I spent with my fellow hci students. Unfortunately, we accidentally chose to sit in front of some music-wannabe students. So when the orchestra played the Star Spangled banner, the people behind us stood up and starting singing. And throughout the entire opera, they made comments here and there. Not to mention they would SING bravooo and other random warm-up vocal exercises. And they laughed at the weird moments, which disrupted my appreciation.

But otherwise. I have to admit that I was tired and that there was a moment that I almost fell asleep. Otherwise, the opera was better than I thought it was going to be. At times, it seemed like a musical. Earlier, Joon told me how almost all operas are alike — same storyline, guy meets girl, they fall in love, something happens to separate them, they meet again, and either someone dies or they live happily ever after. It was set in the 1850s, so it wasn\’t as bad. And yes, it was sung in Italian with English subtitles lit on an overhang thing.

First and last time? We\’ll see.