Opera in South Boston

On sunday afternoon I ventured into dorchester to see the Boston Opera Collaborative's production of Carmen, of which wavyarms was the assistant musical director.. I had not seen the opera in its entirety in many, many years, although I am, of course, quite familiar with the music.
Unfortunately, I got a little lost due to the contruction going on in the area, so I missed the overture. But the rest of the performance was quite good. They'd set the story in teh 1920s or 30s rather than the 19th century, which worked very well and allowed for elegantly simple costuming and staging. The singing was good. I thought the tenor singing Don Jose was especially good.

Book Review

The Time Traveler's Wife
by Audrey Niffenegger

This novel is the story of Clare and Henry, and their relationship which is both enhanced and made more difficult because of Henry's involuntary time-travel (it's kind of like epilepsy). Their love story is beautiful and joyful and sad and moving. Niffenegger's writing is gorgeous and emotionally intense without ever being overwrought. And she has a real talent for describing relationships. This book is amazingly lovely and deeply affecting.
In fact, it's been a very long time since a novel has gotten itself this deeply under my skin. Henry and Clare were so real and alive to me, and I very much identified with them and their relationship. I was profoundly moved by this novel. It's a beautiful meditation on the relationship between love and time; on the way an intimate relationship affects the past, present, and future; on the manner in which we become connected to our lover's past experiences.