La Traviata Concert at Emirates Palace

Throughout the year (but especially during nice weather months), there are quite a few activities and events happening in Abu Dhabi. (Dubai as well, if you are game to make the drive.)

One event that caught my attention ... a) because it was something interesting to do, and b) I have not attended anything opera before ... a concert performance of La Traviata was scheduled at the Emirates Palace for the 3rd of May.

There were three tiers of tickets to choose from.  I decided to go for the better tickets, not knowing anything about the Emirates Palace Auditorium.

You will recall a blog post about me attending a Queen's birthday party at the British Embassy on April 23rd.  At that party, I met a few people.  Two of them (Natalie and Gordon) I ended up talking to and walking around with for a good hour or so.  We hit it off, having fun getting to know each other and enjoying each other's company.  Natalie mentioned that she and Gordon had purchased tickets for La Traviata, and they invited me to have dinner with them beforehand.

You might also recall my post and photos of the Emirates Palace from a previous excursion.  It's a beautiful hotel, with many restaurants.  We made reservations at Mezlai, purported to be the only Emirati cuisine restaurant in Abu Dhabi.  While it was a bit warm, we couldn't resist sitting outside in the fresh air.  Their seating outside is majlis-style canopied tables.  A majlis is usually over-sized comfy cushions on the floor, set up in a square configuration, with food or refreshments in the middle.  Here at our villa, we refer to the living room area as well as the tv room as a majlis.  It's a gathering area, with hospitality at its core.

This majlis overlooked a beautiful outdoor area of the Emirates Palace, with fountains and a rich landscape of plants and grass.  As time went on, the breeze turned cooler. And as the sky darkened with the setting of the sun, the lighting of the building and breezeways was stunning.  The majlis itself had three walls, of a heavy red woven fabric, pulled back on one side to allow the breeze to come in.  The food selection ranged from a variety of fish (I went with sea bass with a light clear sauce and olives atop a delicious cooked spinach), to chicken dishes to lamb to biryani (a type of rice dish that can have different ingredients added to it).  We arrived later than intended to the restaurant, so had time just for a main course, but the food was ample, and quite delicious.  (The Emirates Palace, as you might imagine, is not the most inexpensive option out there, but it's nice to try it at least once!)

Then, time for the concert.  The stage set up was for a concert performance, with the band shell in place and simple lighting.  Two pianists (grand pianos facing each other, nested with each other) were the accompaniment, and they were excellent pianists; completely in sync with each other, and with the singers.  The concert is also an abbreviated (my word) version of the opera, as not all scenes are portrayed. A narrator introduced each scene, and the description was written in the program as well.  This helped to understand context, as the opera is in Italian, and the concert did not have the digital sub-titles I've heard about being used in the U.S.

I enjoyed the concert very much. The three singers were very good.  (If you are an opera fan and curious: Monica De Rosa McKay, Giacomo Patti, and Guiseppe Deligia.)

The auditorium itself was grand, as would be expected.  The gold color theme continues throughout the Emirates Palace. The proscenium arch is impressive, with a huge relief of the UAE crest at the top.  Sorry the photos don't do it justice, but you'll get the gist. 

Now, the tickets were interesting.  When you ordered online, you were told that at the box office you would learn what seats you have.  Then you go in to find your seats, and even though there is a row and seat number on the ticket, that's not reality.  There are sections for certain colors of tickets, and you can sit anywhere in a section, per your cost of ticket.  And the front 5 rows are some sort of Ministry tickets (Very VIP).  The bonus are big comfy seats with lots of leg room! And beautiful artistic lighting on the walls.  It's a very large space; hard for me to guess the number of seats, given the size of the chairs and the leg room ... but large.

Near the auditorium entrance was this beautiful area with fountains.  Try as I might, I could not manage a photo that would do it justice.  It was lovely ... again, you'll get the gist:

Now I think at some point in time I need to go see a full-blown opera.