Opera Reflection

By Brittany Culpepper

I absolutely loved the opera. The stage was huge and it was neat to see how the cast used and filled the entire thing. And yet I was still able to follow Carmen. The props that perhaps most impressed me were the horses. The complex choreography was fantastic, especially when considering that there were so many people on stage. I wanted to be able to appreciate everything individually but that would be impossible. I definitely appreciated it as a whole.

The use of so many characters made this opera seem more realistic. In real life these scenes would have taken place in bustling areas so the suspension of disbelief was improved. I thought the orchestra was phenomenal. It was very easy to know what was happening in the play because the dynamics and tone lent to the story telling and enhanced the mood. The fact that the voices were able to carry through the open-air arena without microphones is the most mind boggling to me. The spectacle made the slight discomfort of the seats more than worth it. It was very hot and hard, but the intermissions did a good job of breaking it up and we were able to stand and stretch. It was a stunning show and a neat experience to see the opera in that arena under the stars and moon. It is an experience I will remember forever.

Read other students’ testimonials on their experiences in Padua.