The Week's not over till the Fat Lady Sings

Well, that's certainly true this week ..... although there is no fat lady. It's the character of Rosalinde who, with the entire company, brings the curtain down on Flagermusen and week 16.

And so how, then, after my expressions of unbridled optimism on Monday, did the week turn out? I boldly stated that in the Opera you know you are going to be further on at the end of the week than you were at the beginning. Well?! I hear, Spill the beans.

I can say with my hand on my heart that it was true - but to differing degrees ....

The "new plan" the chorus had to discuss and vote on was accepted by a sizeable majority. This means I can get down to the fine tuning - if I might use such an audacious phrase - the chorus schedule for next season. With this in mind, I can look forward to seasons up to 4 years ahead.

But on the rehearsal front, things turned out as feared: moving on to stage did create some problems. Delays were had by all, and delays mean a lot of waiting around. It is at times like this one realises there is really only so much coffee one can drink before the caffeine level becomes so high, one finds oneself involuntarily vibrating on to stage. Being inactive is paradoxically one of the biggest energy sappers there is. How many times have you got out of a car or an aeroplane after a long journey and felt lifeless - lifeless from doing nothing? Yet it is so .... Consequently, waiting for 2 hours to go on stage has a negative knock-on effect on the quality of the rehearsal, when it happens. And because the rehearsals started late, the wholesale runthroughs did not quite happen. And until the first runthrough has taken place there is always uncertainty for all concerned as to how the show fits together.

Next week though, a vital element in the operatic puzzle arrives. The orchestra! On Tuesday we rehearse for the first time with the orchestra and THAT is always exciting. Deepdown in the depths of Holmen lies the Orchestral Rehearsal Room, and for one, may be two rehearsal sessions, we can forget the problems that come with the staging - costumes that might need to be altered, technical apparatus which is proving to be stubborn, the steps at the side of the set which inelegantly propelled us on to the stage yesterday - and, as if on a course of Yoga and Relaxation, we can light the imaginary candles, smell the imaginary scents and reconnect with the conductor. I look forward to that.

And finally ..... just to show life goes on for the chorus outside the theatre - one of our troupe became a father this week. A little boy .... aaaaah! Tillykke!!

Philip White