l'opera di elektra!

This past Tuesday I went to the Opera called Elektra with eight of my friends in the program. The entire opera was in German, but it had Italian subtitles which I was actually able to translate a little. So we all ended up listening to the opera in German, trying to read it in Italian, then trying to translate it to English. Although we couldn't understand the whole Opera, trying to translate the Opera was probably the best part of the whole thing!

The plot of Elektra is based upon the great Greek tragedy of the Sophocles. The Opera was a drama based solely on revenge. The mother Klytaemnestra along with her lover Aegisth secured the murder of her husband Agamemnon and is now afraid that her crime will be avenged by her child Elektra, Chrysothemis, and their banished brother Orestes. Elektra, tries to persuade her timid sister to kill Klytaemnestra and Aegisth. Before the plan is carried out, Orestes, who had been reported as dead, arrives, determined upon revenge for his father's death. He kills Klytaemnestra and Aegisth.

The main actress' voice was absolutely amazing. All nine of us watched the Opera awe-struck. Towards the end of Elektra's final act, her voice seemed to vibrate throughout the entire opera house. Chills ran up my arm as the audience sat motionless while this woman sang as if she was pouring her heart out for everyone to see. I can't tell you how impressed I was with every actor in this Opera. Every actor and actress was fully committed to their role. The Opera house itself was also very impressive. It was everything that I imagined a traditional Roman Opera house to look like. Red carpet lined the walkway to each seat and all of the seats were covered in red velvet. A huge crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling of the building along with smaller chandeliers surrounding the perimeter of the ceiling. The people attending the opera were dressed beautifully along with a touch of class. It was almost like a scene out of Phantom of the Opera. Bellisimo!!