I looked over at my daughter and her hand was over her chest, her mouth was wide open wide and her brown eyes were the size of saucers. As the audience clapped loudly, she said, “Oh my, Mommy! Her voice sounds like a flute. It’s so pretty.”
At intermission, I told her that we could leave—and she looked at me as if I were telling her that we could just skip Christmas.
We returned to our velvet seats. “Oh mommy, they feel so soft,” she said. “Much fancier than going to the movies.”
What a wonderful story! (And shame to those who commented in a horrible way; have you nothing better to do?!)
If we get more excited children, we will have a future. If we dismiss them, frown upon them, or tell them they don’t belong, we might as well kiss it goodbye.
Dan was just saying, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if each musician found a child to bring to the opera”. Or he said something like that, anyway. (I suppose I shouldn’t have put it in quotes. But really, it would be so great!
We have a lovely young girl who comes to Opera San José. She always comes to more than one performance of an opera, in fact. Our principal flutist, who is wonderful with children, has befriended her, so we frequently see her come to the pit. It makes my heart so darn happy!
