A Delightful Afternoon

I had the opportunity last weekend to go to the opera with friends. We saw The Marriage of Figaro, which is a delight! It was a university performance in a small, intimate theatre setting, which in a way, made it all the more enjoyable. We sat close enough to see the actors' expressions. They were having a ball! AND, so were we and the audience. It was a joyful afternoon.

There is something about Mozart's operas....the music, of course, is beautiful. No one can argue about that. But, there is something more. He chose stories about people; the human condition, with all its flaws, its emotions, the daily ritual of living. And, there is no pretense. The story of Figaro could be set in any time frame, and it has been performed as such. Love, jealousy, insecurity, despair, flirtation, passion, forgiveness...timeless themes.

The production is an opera buffa, or comic opera, conceived from a play by Pierre Beaumarchais, written in 1784. Mozart brought Figaro to the stage in 1786, without the real blessing of the Holy Roman Emperor/German King Joseph II. The play was banned in Vienna, because of its licentiousness, but Mozart's librettist managed to get an official approval for an operatic version, and it was a great success.

There is an exchange in in Amadeus that really hits the nail on the head. Up until now, operas were concerned with lofty themes, gods and legends in otherworldly settings. In trying to persuade the Emperor to let him go ahead with Figaro, Mozart exclaims, "Which one of you would rather listen to your hairdresser than Hercules, or Horatius or Orpheus. People so lofty, they sound as if they shit marble."

The point? The point is that we really want to see real life performed, and we in turn can choose the character we relate to.And that is the bottom line of Figaro! We see ourselves, we see our struggles, our joys, our passions, all played out before us.

One of our troupe of opera-goers yesterday, had never been to the opera. When we left, she remarked that she had a wonderful time! What better opera to start with than Figaro! It is funny, witty; there are scenes of deep emotion; there is a happy ending!

Yay!!!

The Baddeley Cake

Still in the holiday mood, I looked into another new year's tradition and found THE BADDELEY CAKE! And what is this, you say?

Well, here is the story:

In old London town, one of the original directors of the famed Drury Lane Theatre died in 1794. His name, Robert Baddeley. He was an actor, and had worked as a cook and valet, though little else is known about him. In his Will, he left a bequest to provide a Twelfth Night Cake and Punch to be enjoyed by the actors in residence at the Drury every year on January 6th!

A Fund was established for the "purchase of the cake and wine for ever." The first cake was cut on January 6th, 1795, making this the oldest theatrical tradition still in existence! The cutting of the special cake is a big event to this day.

Robert had become an actor having been inspired by his employer, actor Samuel Foote. Robert spent three years on a Grand Tour, which allowed him to develop accents and learn languages that helped with his acting. These accents became a hallmark of his career. One of his famous roles was in The School for Scandal, a melodramatic work by Sheridan. By the way, Robert's wife Sophia, was also a noted actor, and later on, others of the Baddeley clan took to the stage, including Hermione Baddeley (Mary Poppins, Little House on the Praire, Maude).

Over the years, the cake has become more and more famous for its unique annual theme. Sometimes, it displays the theme of the play that is appearing at the Drury. Only a few times, the cake was not presented, one being during WWII when the theatre was closed, and the ingredients were not available because of rationing.  The punch, in recent years, has been served from a lovely silver bowl given to the theatre by the original My Fair Lady company!