Cherished musical experiences: Post 4

[helenkacan]

I performed in only two operas while at the Faculty of Music. The first one was Iphigenie en Tauride by Glück. I was one of the Furies who scampered down rocks onto the stage. We performed for a few nights running and the incredibly ugly costume I wore looked like burlap (even the same colour). So flattering. NOT! However, for the final night, one of my friends didn't feel like showing up, so I got to wear her costume, a simply splendid baby blue Grecian style gown that complemented my long blonde hair fabulously. [Alas, any piccies of me - usually lying on the floor!?! in it - are downstairs in my locker, so not available at the moment.] At least the women were lucky. All we had to do was wear our gowns without any underwear underneath, because the stage would be lit only by black light and we couldn't have anything spoiling the illusion of other-worldliness. ::giggles:: Ah ... I remember (was his name) Laszlo, our mad Hungarian makeup artist, who was bold enough to reach in through the arm hole of my gown ... just to make sure I was ... er ... following the rules!

At least the women were luckier than the guys. They got to wear these barbarian skirt-like rags and had brown makeup smeared over their otherwise naked bodies. Giant yuck. Imagine washing that off every night.

The following year, I appeared in Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro. The director was also the director of the Canadian Opera Company and he loved-loved-loved to choreograph many little scenes all over the stage ... not merely concentrating on the leads. I guess he thought I liked to act (::pretends to be surprised:: Who, moi?) and chose me to do a little ad-libbing. Even though I was with the crowd and with my stage-boyfriend (::shouts out to Doug::), the Count showed an interest in me. So I went up to him and was flirting with him. It's amazing to think of what I can remember after 40 years. However, when the Count wanted me to stick around, I ended up jilting him and flounced back to my regular boyfriend. Oh, that was loads of fun.

To add to the authenticity of our costumes (and I thought mine was delightful, very figure-flattering) is that we wore garters with our woolen stockings. Can you guess what clothing malfunction I had (I believe it was in the last performance)? Well, after I flounced back to my boyfriend and then proceeded to drag him territorially off stage, I didn't realize that one of my garters had lost its grip and slid completely off my leg. So, you think, No. Big. Deal. And you would be wrong because the following scene had a ballet interlude and the ballerinas were slipping and sliding, trying to avoid MY garter on the stage. Oh, yes, so much fun.

One of the side effects of doing several performances in a row (meaning staying up late and also sitting around in our dressing rooms waiting for our next scene) is that my stomach rebelled. It would not allow me to eat regular food. I don't know whether it was all day long, but I definitely remember that the only things it would accept in the evenings was chocolate and Coke, because - at least in my body - both were well tolerated (no kidding, huh) and easily digested.

I could have also been in a third opera, Aida, the summer of my final year. But I would have been merely an extra in the crowd scenes, not even permitted to sing. Considering the insane rehearsal schedule, I just said, "Screw it," and declined the opportunity. And I still don't regret it.

But these are two of my most cherished memories. And I'm right above my name in the scene.