Sunday afternoon I headed downtown Naples to the San Carlo Theater for the evening performance of La Bohème with several other coworkers on a group trip. Well, technically we first went to Gran Caffe' Gambrinus for our afternoon coffee and delicious sugary pastries. This famous spot located near Piazza del Plebiscito is always full of people and that was no exception as our group walked into one of the back rooms...maybe where Ernest Hemingway, Oscar Wilde, or Jean Paul Sartre sat when they frequented this spot. Or you know, in one of the once closed rooms due to their use by anti-fascists in the 1930s...
Caffeine loaded we crossed the street back towards Teatro San Carlo to find our seats for La Bohème. It is named after the Bourbon Charles III of Naples (Carlo III in Italian), the theater was inaugurated in1737. At time of construction, it was the largest opera house in the world. Teatro San Carlo is the oldest continuously active venue in Europe (shows since 1874 except for a short span after the unification of Italy). A fire in 1816 destroyed the entire building, but Ferdinand I of Bourbon ordered the theatre to be rebuilt just six days later and after 10 months shows once again started- miraculous if you only knew just how long things take to complete around here!
The interior is rather gold and velvety. It is said that the soft fabric (literally covering so much of the place) is what creates the fabulous acoustics. Only later did I learn why each of the boxes had mirrors- to sneak glances at the Royal Box without gawking (major faux paus!) to make sure the royals always started the applause.
Situated snugly in our balcony box, the lights flickered indicating the show was getting ready to start and then just like that the lights dimmed and curtain raised to reveal the set on stage. While I was taking that in, the air was filled by the orchestra and Italian. Yep. Italian. I realized quickly that I should have cheated on the story since I really had no idea of the plot and although the words being sung appeared on a screen above the stage, my Italian level 4 left many lines meaning nothing to me. Then as I was translating every 5th word...I got to thinking...if this is a show performed in different countries do they always translate the music? And really isn't the title in French? Well, again, after a little investigating it turns out La Bohème originally was written in Italian. Although, yes, it takes place in France. Totally validates my confusion if you ask me.
The end of the performance left me confused and sad. Confused as to what I really had just watched, but still sad that it ends how it does. Even now, after reading the story I feel like the story needs improvement? (Yep. I'm always the critic!) At any rate, it was a fabulous time and it's always fun to dress up a little bit. Okay, maybe a lot? Only here in Italy would "afternoon elegant" translate to "cocktail dresses" or even "gowns" if desired.
