Row C

Little did I know that my earlier entry would prove so timely! Scarcely had I written about my Evanescence experience, only to discover that we had tickets to the Symphony. Hey, no problem.... I like the symphony. We have one of those multipacks that you buy at the beginning of the year and then you choose which performances you would like to attend. Kind of gives you some flexibility. What I did not know was that my wonderful wife Pam had chosen 'Balletomania', for us to attend.

However, not only were we going to 'Balletomania' but somehow Pam managed to get seats that were 3 rows from the front! What I learned that night was that the first 3 rows of the Winspear auditorium are deemed 'too close' to the stage to be considered to be prime seats, which is why they were available for the performance. Pam figured that because there would be some ballet dancers performing, it might be good to be quite close. I should have become suspicious at that point, but life was moving too quickly last week for me to give it much thought.

The evening arrived: we put on appropriate attire, left the kids in the capable care of one of our babysitters, jumped in the car and off we went. It was a rare evening and the planets must have been in alignment or something, because we arrived early! Quite early actually. After taking in some of the live piano music in the foyer of the auditorium, we made our way to our seats: Row C, seats 105 and 106 (guessing on the seats, but definitely Row C!!)

I have to admit that it was a new experience being that close to the members of the symphony. Usually we're up in the 1st balcony, but from Row C, you can see the wedding rings on their fingers! My suspicions should have been peaked again, when I noticed that only 3 people were in the row in front of us, with NOBODY being in the first row. However, I was quite content to enjoy my Row C experience. For the time being that is!

The first number was nice and warmed everybody up. I was excited that the conductor, Ormsby Wilkins, was from Australia, and he certainly didn't disappoint. Following the opening number (and throughout the night) he took a microphone and spoke to the audience, providing some very interesting bits of information about the upcoming pieces.

On to the 2nd piece: The conductor had informed us (as did the program) that this would be first of two pieces that would be accompanied by dance. The music began and suddenly from the right side of the stage, a female dancer came out, accompanied by a male dancer. Now to the trained and experienced, this probably would be totally expected. However, from my ignorant perspective, given the small area of the stage set apart for the dance portion, I was NOT expecting a male dancer as well.

You have to keep in mind that from Row C, you are actually looking UP at the stage (slightly) and thus, not only was I entirely TOO close to this strapping young man in white tights, but I was forced to look UP at him as he leapt around the stage. Men in tights are simply not my thing; maybe they do it for some people, and perhaps if I had a body like those dancers, I too would be tempted to wear tights.... okay, forget that... not in a million years!

I've been to the Ballet before and I've been fairly close to the stage before and I've seen men in tights before (much to my dismay, I might add!), and I also need to admit my ignorance when it comes to Ballet, but I must ask: WHY, O why did the man have to wear WHITE tights? Why not another color? Perhaps a darker color that might blur the lines and curves that nobody really needs to see! But not only was he wearing white tights, but WHY, O WHY did he choose to wear a blue thong?? Was it necessary? I suppose I can understand the reason, but did it have to be BLUE? Clearly no thought had been given to the poor souls in Row C who would have an upward gaze toward the valley of the blue thong!

I turned to Pam and whispered to her, "You owe me!", to which she burst into silent laughter. I admit, I laughed too!

Now, while I will say that there was WAY too much 'package' seen that night, the dancing itself was very beautiful. I'm not a huge fan, and a lot of the movements and such are beyond my appreciation. On a musical note, I learned a lot. It was kind of a 'best of' ballet night, highlighting several Ballet pieces that are extremely famous (known even by me!); yet I had no idea that the music was made for Ballet. Overall it was a fun evening, and I kept Pam laughing throughout the night with comments similar to what I'm writing here.

So if you ever get a chance to go to the Winspear, check out Row C. The view is quite something!