A Conversation with Laurie and Mean Laurie

I'm a pretty laid-back person.

Try telling that to your kids.

No really!  I'm so laid-back I sometimes have to remind myself to breathe.  Listlessly.

You got me there.

So I'm about to exert myself here and suggest -- nay, INSIST! --

Nay?

that you treat yourself to a theater experience this weekend.  Saturday.  Saturday morning.  THIS Saturday, not NEXT Saturday.  I cannot stress this enough!  THIS Saturday morning.

SO laid-back.  Lighten up, Francis -- what's so special about THIS Saturday?

I'll tell you.  You wanna know?

I wanna know.

Sure you can handle it?

Look, I'm losing interest here.

Okay.

EYE CANDY.

Oh, like we can't get that at the theater any time.

Okay, EYE AND EAR CANDY.

Ewwwwwwww.  Ear candy just sounds sticky.

Okay, smartypants, I'll show you.

It's this guy.


(Photo stolen from this site)

Huh?  Huh?  Did I tell ya?  I mean, WOO-HOO, right?

Okay, I'll give you that, but . . . EAR candy?  What's with that?

I'm getting to that.  Wait, I gotta find it . . . okay, HERE.

I am so sure.  Opera?  You want me to listen to OPERA?

C'mon, it'll be good for you.  And besides, did you SEE that guy?  Singing to you?

I'll say it again --



which is bested only by having a man -- THAT man, tenor Juan Diego Flórez -- sing to you in Italian, maybe . . . wearing silk . . . crap, where was I?  oh yeah -- you HAVE to go to your local theater Saturday morning to see the live New York Metropolitan Opera performance of La Fille Du Regiment (The Daughter of the Regiment).  It will be simulcast live, just as the opera is on Saturdays over the radio -- only this is video.  But back to Mr. Wonderful.  In his most famous aria "Ah! Mes Amis" Flórez  hits nine high C's, which is one of the things which cemented Luciano Pavarotti's place in operatic history --

That and his shoe-black hair.

-- and the audience goes WILD every time.  You can feel the electricity, and you just KNOW they're gonna give him a thunderous standing O when he's done.  And they will, I promise.  I could also entice you by saying that this is a fun and light-hearted, funny opera (no linebacker women in horned helmets here).



Natalie Dessay is delightful and cute as a bug's ear and will be thrilling (because she's frightfully up to the challenge of Donizetti's vocal acrobatics), and the sets, and the LIVE EDITING people -- LIVE EDITING!  Tons of cameras and microphones that you can't see, LIVE!  It's like the Oscars, only with SUBSTANCE and CLASS!  and the music, and the costumes, and Donizetti . . .

You lost me there, chief.

Yeah, I know.  Okay, so I'll just lean on this --



I mean, Jeebus, how much more do I need to say?

If you want to see Monday night's history-making performance by Mr. Hubba-Hubba above (that's Juan Diego Flórez) of “Ah! Mes Amis” -- go here or listen to it here.  Or, type his name into Youtube.com, like I did, and sit back and cry like a baby, like I did.

Make sure they know that's Wimpy Laurie, and not Mean Laurie, doing all that crying.

I will.

Comments

[Gubby]

Shouldn't a French opera be sung in German?

[Rick's Cafe]

HA - I can save you the price of a ticket....just listen to me yodel in the shower - especially after a few beers!

[Jason]

You're so well-rounded, both of you!

[Bob Cleveland]

So ... you ever gonna tell us WHICH one was "Mean Laurie" and which one wasn't?

Telling ME to LISTEN to opera is about as mean as it gets, for me, even when I don't have to GO someplace to do it.

[foolery]

You're right, MamaMo, and I CANNOT click that link (maybe later) because I WILL cry. Pavarotti's voice and vocal power is unlike anything there ever has been, or will be, sigh. And yes, I think he was very sexy. Except for the shoe-black hair, shudder.

To Music Appreciation: I will be with my mother and my silver-haired uncle in the theater Saturday, so I'll try to restrain my stage-rushing proclivities. But I might toss my bra at the screen.

Sorry, Rick, I loves me a good beer-drinking man, yes I do, and I like to drink beer while I cry at the opera. But yes, "Frog opera" makes me weak in the knees -- almost as weak as Italian opera. But not German or English opera. They need to stick to making me more beer. :)

[MamaMo]

I love opera too, but NO ONE, and I mean NO ONE, can ever take the place of the ultimate ear/eye candy - Luciano Pavarotti. I mean, really... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEkHmTuWRIE

[Music Appreciation]

WOW - I didn't know there was anybody else who listened to French opera besides me....let alone appreciates it.

Try to keep from rushing the stage at the ovations!

[Rick's Cafe]

French opera?
Didn't the frogs give up on that when they retreated in the 1600s, 1700s, and several times each in the 1800 & 1900s.

Can't understand why any woman would drool over other women with hairy armpits who can't sing as high as their 'supposed' male counterparts. Except, possibly to appreciate their manly men when they finally get back into the kitchen.
TGIF - Beer me!

[suburban kamikaze]

You had me at French.

SK

[foolery]

I'll have to check my link again, CRUD. But until then, you can go to http://www.fathomevents.com//details.aspx?eventid=671 to find a theater near you. I think you type in your zip code.

It's $22 a ticket for adults so it's a bit more than your average theater experience, IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD *MORE*.

Standing O up to you, I'm afraid (you knocked me out with that one, Sarah! ha ha ha -- still laughing).

And it's 1:30 p.m. eastern time, AND most of the theaters are running an encore presentation (in my town it's on Sunday 4/27/08).

If you buy your tickets on-line it costs a dollar extra, or just go down to your local theater and buy them there.

AND, if you aren't able to go sit in a comfy movie house to see it, you can always turn on your radio and catch the live audio on NPR, standing in your kitchen weeping, like I often do.

[ok, where was I]

I could so go for a thunderous standing O.

Talk about substance and class. You're hip to all kinds of hip and classy things. But I'm almost entirely certain I will not find this in my hometown.

I like mean Laurie.

[david]

YOu will soooooooooooo love it. I want to come! Or at least get a full report/critique of the whole opera.
Do enjoy!

[Chesapeake Bay Woman]

Wow. The closest thing we have to opera here is the middle-school students singing You Are My Sunshine at Grandparents Day.

Sounds like you'll have a great time. Beware: too much eye candy may cause cavities. And drooling.

[MommyTime]

OH, Lord, I think I'm in love. And me who was so excited JUST LAST NIGHT by the fact that my hunky TVLand boyfriend was finally back on the airwaves. I might be about to break his heart for this guy. EXCEPT. I don't get how I'm supposed to see the simulcast performance on Saturday. Where again? When? I'm dying here, since the link you provided only sends me to two minutes worth of dress rehearsal. Any more advice?