Opera: The Girl of the Golden West

I'd never heard of The Girl of the Golden West before, but it's by Puccini, so I figured I'd take a shot. Mind you, the ENO website proved impossible to access - they must have had a lot of business lately! Looking at it now, some of the dates are wrong on the front page.. they have this not starting until next Saturday, and The Marriage of Figaro starting tomorrow, whereas the notice in the Coliseum itself tonight had it starting next Saturday. Don't believe what you read, as they say.. Anyhoo, unable to book via the official website, I booked through TheatrePeople.com instead.

I haven't booked with them before, and what a surprise to get the ticket in the post! Who does that, these days?! So, of course, I was paranoid about losing it. It lashed rain on my way in, and my paper was pretty soaked by the time I got there, dodging brollies all the way. from the station The advantage of having your ticket in advance, of course, is that you don't have to queue for the box office, and I headed straight up the stairs. Now, I'd forgotten that the balcony is the top level here - it isn't the top level in the Opera House, where I've been more recently. And my, do you feel it here.. I felt quite unfit on the ascent, but as I came down at the end, I had to concede that there is a serious amount of stairs to climb in the Coliseum. I even had to take a breather before the last flight. (There is a lift, if the thought of all those stairs fills you with dread. I don't think it's used much, though.)

It helps to know which side you're on, when you do get there, panting for air - there are separate doors for left and right, and the signs don't give seat numbers. After a moment's thought, I remembered I was on the right, and the usher directed me straight down the aisle ahead of me. I had sensibly elected to pick a seat no further forward than third row from the back, where you enter - the stairs are quite steep, and unlike the Opera House, there are no handrails. And I do have a problem with stairs. Third row, I can manage without too much difficulty. As I took my seat, I was reminded how ornate the building is - that's the advantage of a balcony seat, you can see the roof.

The seats don't tip, unusually, and do have very straight backs and armrests. Not as comfortable as those in the level below - the Upper Circle. Still, by far not the worst I've had. As curtain-up time approached, it became apparent that many of the seats would not be filled. In the end, maybe a quarter of the balcony was unoccupied, including most of my row - I scooched over one when the lights went down, to avoid the large head in front of me. And I do find the legroom there ever so slightly snug, so was glad of the chance to extend myself and my belongings in various directions. Especially as this opera has three acts.

Well, this is Puccini's "Western" opera. In short, and as you might expect, it will appeal if you like operas, and like Westerns. Set in California, it tells the story of a small mining community, with hardly any women - apart from the "girl" of the title, Minnie, the only woman in the whole thing is her Native American maid, who has hardly any lines and appears in just one scene. It's the era of the Gold Rush, and Minnie owns a saloon and looks after the miners' gold for them. All the guys fancy her, but she is indifferent to them all - until a stranger comes to town and shakes everything up..

I really didn't know what to expect, coming into this. I feared something a bit laughable - and, indeed, it does seem out-of-sync to have cowboys singing opera. But stick with it, and you soon discover a marvellous score, some really incredible singing, and a plot that wouldn't be out of place in any Western. I had a helluva time - very entertaining. As I say, you kind of have to like both operas and Westerns - if you do, this is a great show to come to! Runs until 1 November, three performances per week. Oh, and booking on the official website seems to be functional again.

It had stopped raining when I eventually made it down all those stairs again, and outside. But the rain found me when I got off the Tube again. I'm guessing it'll follow a pattern, and still be raining tomorrow - when it's looking like a film. And there's really only one film right now at the top of my list, far ahead of all the competitors.. Gone Girl. I loved the book, and am dying to see what hand they've made of the screen version.. then I'm off to Ireland again, unusually - for a whole week, this time! Wonder whether I'll escape the rain..?