Opera in movie theatre a hit
Anna Netrebko as Elvira in Bellini’s <i>I Puritani</i>.
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Cineplex movie theatre rolls out summer season
There are some things in life that should not be done before noon. Martinis, for one. High tea, another.
But apparently, heading to a theatre at 10 o’clock on a Saturday morning to watch recorded performances of the Metropolitan Opera is okay.
Last weekend about two dozen people showed up at the Cineplex Silver City theatre to watch a 2007 rendition of Bellini’s I Puritani.
Three years ago Cineplex began broadcasting live performances of the New York company in its theatres across the country.
Now they’ve taken it a step further, with six recorded performances lined up between now and September, including The Magic Flute, Eugene Onegin, and La Boheme.
The fact Victoria resident Sam Wallace was watching a recorded 2007 performance didn’t bother him.
With his wife Nina Oppermann, Wallace felt the recorded version enhanced his understanding of an opera he’d seen staged in Seattle.
“You get to see close-ups and where it’s going,” he said. Wallace had never been to an opera before he and his wife started coming to the live broadcasts last fall.
Now he’s hooked. “When you see all that goes into a production like this, it makes you appreciate it all the more.”
Silver City had to open up a second screen because the live series proved to be so popular, said assistant manager Sarah Head.
The University of Victoria graduate introduces the operas to the audience and said eager opera watchers sometimes line up two-and-a-half hours before performances start. Head started working at the theatre as a teenager and never imagined she’d end up introducing opera to patrons.
“At the end of the season some people give her flowers,” said her boss, Matt Garth.
Shown at 20 Cineplex theatres across the country, the first of the summer series was a treat for opera goer Angela Jang.
“I don’t see the Pacific Opera of Victoria that much because of the cost,” the Victoria resident said, “so this is a way to see it in an affordable and comfortable way.”
Cineplex’s next Metropolitan opera showing will be Mozart’s The Magic Flute on Saturday, July 11, 10 a.m. Tickets are $9.95 and are available at the theatre box office or online at www.cineplex/com/events.
vmoreau@saanichnews.com
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