If anyone's in the South Kensington area of London at 3pm tomorrow (14 February), do pop into the Waterstone's bookshop inside the Science Museum, where I'll be signing copies of Ecologic. No need to buy a book - it would be great to see a friendly face!
If I'm honest, the title of this post is an exaggeration to make a point. I don't really hate opera. There are a couple of operas - notably Monteverdi's Incoranazione di Poppea and Purcell's Dido & Aeneas - that I quite like. But what I do find truly sickening is the reverence with which opera is treated, as if it were some particularly great art form. Nowhere was this more obvious than in ITV's 2010 gut-wrenchingly awful series Pop Star to Opera Star , where the likes of Alan Tichmarsh treated the real opera singers as if they were fragile pieces on Antiques Roadshow, and the music as if it were a gift of the gods. In my opinion - and I know not everyone agrees - opera is: Mediocre music Melodramatic plots Amateurishly hammy acting A forced and unpleasant singing style Ridiculously over-supported by public funds I won't even bother to go into any detail on the plots and the acting - this is just self-evident. But the other aspects need some exp
How frustrating! That's my neck of the woods, but I'm flying off tomorrow for our family half-term trip. What fun for you, though!
ReplyDeleteSouth Kensington is a little bit too far for me. But Amazon faithfully delivered your book last week.
ReplyDeleteNever mind, Sue, have a great trip.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Martin - hope you find it interesting.
I would have really liked to come but I have to work today (how sad). Hope it goes well, the book sounds brilliant
ReplyDeleteThanks, Angela. Unfortunately two people who saw this came and went before I arrived, and one more after I'd left, so I had to make do with the passing trade.
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