ROMEOrev - Page: 1 of 1

We left Vero Beach for Naples about 8:45 am on Saturday. The drive is
westward through the area around Lake Okeechobee. We arrived at
my cousin's house (Susan Bulis) about 12:15 pm, which made it a
3 1/2 hour drive. As we drove south on Rte. 75, we passed Estero,
where the Opera Naples' production was presented in the International
Design Center Atrium. Susan's house was a half hour south of the venue.
Our plan was for Susan to go to Romeo and Juliet with me on Saturday
night and John would go with me on Sunday afternoon. I didn't
realize how great a plan that was, until I realized that we would be a
half hour closer to our home in Vero Beach from Estero than it would
have been from Susan's house in Naples. So, we wouldn't have to
leave the post opera reception early for our drive back to Vero Beach

Susan didn't know what was in store for her Saturday night. She had
only seen Anthony one time prior to Saturday night, last summer in Wrentham,
MA, in the horrible heat. What she didn't know was that our seats did
not have actual seat numbers, only the Premium section, and that I would
want to go early, to get good seats!! Susan also didn't know that I would
want to stay at the reception for a long time!! Starting time was 8 pm on
Saturday, so we got there about 6:45 pm. The International Design
Center is a new facility of individual up-scale stores, some who sell
furniture, some who sell home furnishings, imported tiles, etc.
The glass ceiling atrium was where the opera was staged.

We went inside, showed our tickets, and were immediately led to the
seating section that matched the price tickets that I bought. I asked
if there was going to be an opportunity to meet the cast during the

post-opera reception and learned that the cast would be at the
reception - great news for Anthony fans who had traveled far to see him.
It was really nice to see the ballet dancers rehearsing on the platform
stage built for this production while we were sitting in our seats.
We also could see sword fighters rehearsing behind the large screen
where the English translations were shown.

Gradually, the venue filled with Anthony fans and area residents
dressed in tuxedos and very formal dresses on the ladies.
Excitement was rising as the time to start was approaching.

Two trumpeters came to the stage area from the orchestra pit to
play the trumpet blare to announce the start of the show. The
lights dimmed, the concert master tuned the orchestra, the
conductor appeared, the head of Opera Naples, Steffanie
Pearce, gave her welcoming announcement, and the opera began,
with an orchestral prelude.

The cast members were dressed in period clothes, make-up, and
hair of that era. Anthony wore boots and did not wear tights, as
many fans speculated several weeks ago that he might have worn.
Happily, they did not use any electronic amplification for the
performers' voices. The first scene was at the dance where Romeo
and Juliet first lay eyes on each other. Romeo and his friends wore
masks, but I recognized Anthony immediately by his build.
Later he removed the mask. When those sweet tones first came
out of his mouth, I realized that we were in for a special treat.

We were all uncomfortable about taking pictures during the
performance Saturday night, so we all have very few pictures
until the very end of West Side Story that night. We took loads at
the reception. But, Sunday afternoon, we all realized that those in
charge at the venue did not care if we took pictures

It was clear to me that the star performer of the weekend was Anthony.
He was well received by the crowd.

The normal behavior in an audience at an Anthony solo or IT concert
is that I alone call out "Bravo" where the performer has just sung
exceptionally or where I particularly like the song. I do the same
at all live performances, not just for three certain tenors. But, on
this weekend, some others joined me in my bravos!! I heard
several male "Bravo's" accompanying my own throughout the nights.
I can never understand why more people don't do the same!!

Juliet/Maria was soprano Heather Buck, but I preferred the voice
of mezzo soprano Leah Summers as Romeo's aide or friend,
Stephano/Anita. For those who are not familiar with opera,
most young boy/men roles are traditionally sung by mezzos.

I talked with Anthony at the Saturday reception about where
he stood for an aria in the middle of the first half. He stood next
to a white brick pillar on the "balcony" sort of in the rear.
There were these glass or plexiglass panels along the stairs. I
thought that he was too far back and the glass blocked the sound
of his voice from projecting into the crowd. So, I told him that.
I also told him that I know when I am right about things related
to music, and he agreed that I am. I told him to talk to his
director about the voice projection.

So, on the Sunday performance, he moved that aria down the
stairs, so he could project over the glass. It is really nice to
know that I made a suggestion to him, and he followed it
completely. He gave me a pointed finger when I first saw him,
as if to say, I am going to follow your suggestion.

The event was advertised as Romeo and Juliet, Then and Now.
The "then" was the first "half" and the "now" was the second "half."
However, although I didn't have a watch or time the actual halfs,
I'd estimate that the Romeo and Juliet was about 3/4 of the
show and the West Side Story (only 6 songs - the Jet song, America,
Maria, I Feel Pretty, Somewhere, and Tonight) was the other 1/4.
Anthony sang Maria solo, of course, duet on Somewhere, and
the quintet Tonight.

At Intermission, Opera Naples auctioned three items (each day)
to benefit the new opera facility that they want to build in Naples.
The first item was an on stage appearance in their next opera,
the Magic Flute, by my favorite composer. The second was a
deep sea fishing trip. The third was the necklace that Juliet wore
that day. We could have done very nicely without those auctions,
we do not live in the area, and do not have the interest that
the residents there have.

For the second "half" the cast turned to 1950s NYC attire. Anthony
wore blue jeans and a leather jacket. At one of the receptions, some
(unknown) woman told him that he looked like a teenager, he
looked so young.

They got a rousing applause at the end of the show, several
bravos from not only me, and a few "encores" to which they
complied with a reprise of part of Tonight.

The audience then headed to the wing of the building
where the reception was to be held. There was champagne for
free, but if you wanted anything else to drink, you had to pay.
Since, I do not drink alcohol, I went to the water fountain!!
Eventually waiters came out carrying trays of two types of bite
sized hors d'oeuvres, one on a cracker with maybe cream
cheese and some pomegranate, and the other, called truffle
pizza, on bread, with cream cheese and a shaving of the fungus.
Since I do not eat fungi or seeds, I did not partake of
either hors d'oeuvre!!!

Finally, the cast members came to the reception, with
our primo divo the last to arrive, as should be. There were
many important people for Anthony to meet there. He also found
time to pose for photos with some of his regular fans.

Susan probably would have liked to go home, but was a good
sport and tolerated me!! I had a wonderful time, with a
second performance at 3 pm the next day.

With a 3 pm starting time on Sunday in mind, we changed clothes,
packed our car, and said our adieus to Susan and Ted about 12:30 pm,
and left for the 30 mile drive to Estero. We decided to stop to fuel
our car before the performance, as we had plenty of time then,
and didn't want to be low on fuel in the middle of the nowhere
between Estero and Vero Beach.

We parked at the venue in the same spot as the night before,
and again were seated as soon as we entered the building. John
had plenty of time to explore all the shop windows, which, obviously,
were closed for these performances.

Sunday was a warm, sunny day and the light shone through the
glass ceiling so well that I didn't even think they would need any
electric lighting. That sunlight is what made picture taking that
afternoon such an easy job. We didn't need flash at all, and got
good exposure on most of our photos.

The venue filled gradually as the start time approached. Attire was
not so grand as the black tie affair of the previous night. I saw a few
empty seats on Sunday, that weren't empty on Saturday night.

John has always said that he doesn't like to go to the first night
of any tour, as he consider that first night to be a "dress rehearsal."
This phenomenon occurred in Estero also. I know that the cast ran
through official dress rehearsals before Saturday. But, the performance
on Sunday was markedly that much better than the one on Saturday.

Regarding our Romeo, the reason why we went to see this
Opera Naples production, there is only one word to describe his
performance, magnifique, and I chose this word as befitting the
French opera! Anthony confirmed my opinion that opera is where his
true talent belongs. A friend who used to sing with the US Navy
Sea Chanters told me that tenors don't reach their singing prime until
they are in their low 40s. Anthony has a few years left to reach
that age, so the fact that he has been testing the opera waters
before he is age-ready will be good experience for him.

Since Romeo and Juliet was written by Charles Gounod and not
by Mozart, I cannot list most of the arias that they sang, other than
Ah! lêve-toi soleil sung by Romeo and the very famous aria sung
by Juliet, Je veux vivre dans le rêve.

For the program/playbill, all the six songs from West Side Story
were named, but none of the arias from Romeo and Juliet. I
thought this was a regrettable omission, but most people are not
so concerned with such details.

Again on Sunday, I had many people, particularly men, yell Bravo
with me. This crowd appreciated the talent on the stage.

One change from the first night to Sunday was that Anthony appeared
in a greenish cape after he killed Tybalt in the duel. The cape looked
much greener in person than it does in my pictures, which look kind of
gold. Maybe the prop master forgot to have it ready on Saturday!!

The production proceeded to West Side Story and the final bows.
The cast received a tremendous ovation.

Then, we went to the same reception as the night before - same
champagne and hors d'oeuvres. The cast joined the reception in the
same order as Saturday, with our star the final to enter with applause
and Bravos. Anthony made his way around the packed room and
tried to see everyone. Quel triomphe for his resume.

We left the venue as the reception came to a close and drove back to
Vero Beach in just 3 hours. What a great memory I will have from my
first trip to Naples/Estero, FL.