Confession: I’m a part-time musical enthusiast. I enjoyed “In The Heights” “Wicked” and the music from “RENT”. While I did enjoy “Marry Poppins”, I’m definitely part of the younger generation of pop-rock musicals, rather than the high-art of shows like Aida (the opera, see above).

With all of this said, I enjoyed Aida, the translation above the stage made for an interesting split-screen effect for me, as you suddenly have two places to check and make sure you’re on top of what’s going on. However, if you were lacking the translation you wouldn’t have any issues knowing what was going on, as the music and acting in this show are superb. I was informed ahead of time that “opera is spectacle” and Aida certainly lived up to that sentiment. More than once I was blown away by the depth of detail and scale of the sets on stage. From sliding panels concealing the royal trumpeters to a full temple back drop including full 20′ pillars to the easily 10′ throne of the Egyptian Pharaoh.

I went to Aida mainly because I hadn’t ever experienced opera before. Since I had never been before, I went in with the expectation that I would hear a lot of screechy singing and not much else. However, I was determined to experience opera and see why people liked it. (because they must if it had survived as an art form for as long as it has). I found that the show as a whole grabbed me a good deal more than I expected. The grand march was an excercise in pride and power. The second act was intense suspense and the ending especially tugged at my heart strings. While I’ve since determined that opera is a good deal more than screechy singing, I think I’ll delve into it slowly in future, as like a very dry Chardonnay, is an acquired taste.

While you may be a either a virgin like myself, or a long time opera supporter, I would recommend Aida to you, for the spectacle, for the experience, or just for the evening.