Back in December I had my first encounter with live opera and left with a favorable impression despite some mixed feelings about the music. Tonight there were no such qualms. Werther was overwhelmingly beautiful. The voices were huge and always in control, the story was well told, and the musicality breathtaking. There were times when the raw emotion coming through the vocals had me nearly in tears. This was everything I had hoped live opera would be.
On to the sketches…
The night kicked off with the trusty and much loved pilot G2’s in 0.38 and 10 weights. Unlike during the December show, there was no attempt made to keep up with the action as it unfolded. Happily both the sets and staging of the performance were less chaotic this time around so there was more time to study and get in some of the details.
In the second half, the G2’s were replaced with some Akashiya brush pens acquired over the holidays. It was really the first serious run with them and though a little odd at first, as they are stiffer and less pliant than other brush pens I’ve used, they were super easy to adapt to. Though not as flexible the extra rigidity gives them a really nice snappy feel.
By the end I wanted to spend a bit more time paying attention to the story and performances and left things very quick and gestural. These last doodles were with the smallest and most pen-like of the Akashiyas. All in all another stupendous night at the opera. If you’re in the twin cities area and looking for something to do I highly recommend Werther. Now I just need to find a great recording of it.
FingerTwitchings 