I. San Telmo Drumming
Last Sunday, I went to see African drumming in the neighborhood of San Telmo. It was fantastically easy to find; when you get off the bus, just follow the sound. A group of men, dressed comfortably in sweatshirts or T-shirts, played as they walked. Their drums were decorated with large painted lips, grinning. Before the men danced three women dressed in black. They made a decent dance based around small steps, swaying hips, and smooth gestures; I tried to surreptitiously copy them, but there seemed to be a trick to the deceptively simple moves to make it all come together. People walked along, following the drummers like a very chill recreation of the Pied Piper. When then drummers reached their end, in front of a Socialist group’s headquarters, to give you some of San Telmo’s personality, they circled around the dancers, and took the drumming up a notch. Then everyone quietly dispersed and went home.
II. Opera
Wednesday, I went to an opera. Unlike operas and ballets in the US, here it’s perfectly acceptable to arrive in jeans (although, admittedly, most people dress better here anyway). Most of the audience was in their 50’s or 60’s, and the 5:30pm start time must have been an especially early for Argentineans, who eat dinner around 9pm or 10pm.
I’m always surprised that here theater tickets don’t have assigned seating, so lines will stretch down the block as everyone files up waiting to enter. Still, it has it’s perks - we managed to snag seats 4 rows from the stage. (One friend pointed out to me that in the U.S., getting into events depends on money. You have to pay for better seating to the theater, you have to buy the milonga tickets before hand; In Argentina, a lot depends on time and dedication. If you arrive early, you’re golden).
In the theater, at the top of the curtain, was a digital screen, looking pretty much like a teleprompter, displaying the words to the songs. This is a fantastic invention. Even in English, songs are hard to understand. Admittedly, there were flaws. Often the singers repeated words, but the digital display didn’t, or the actors used synonyms or slightly different wordings. An odd detail was I think the singers often said “gratsi” (Italian) instead of “gracias” (Spanish). Perhaps I misheard, or perhaps it’s a sign of opera’s Italian heritage or of Argentina’s love of Europe leaking in.
This first opera was Suor Angelica, which was not great. Because it was an opera, the music was powerful and pretty and the singers have abilities I cannot dream of, but the plot was, well, not really a plot. It was cause and effect at the best, without suspense, uncertainty, or different sides in conflict. In punishment for having an illegitimate child, a woman had been sent to be a nun. She finds out that her son died, so she kills herself. End.
In the last scene, the woman wore a simple white dress, making her contrast both in formality and color with the somberly colored, more formal clothes of the other characters. The stage lights focused on her, as if she was a ghost or an angel; presumably this indicated that she would not in fact be damned for taking her own life. At the last moment, her dress illuminates brightly with lights hidden in the cloth. I know this should add drama and intensity, but the use of modern technology contrasted too much with the old fashioned setting of the play for me to truly appreciate it. In a more modern atmosphere, it could be great.
What was fantastic, however, was Pagliaci, the second show, and a 2-act opera. The plot is interesting, the music of course powerful, the actors skilled, and the workfull of side plots. The main plot is this: a man finds out his wife is cheating on him. Meanwhile, he and his wife are comedia d’el arte actors, playing husband and wife in a show about a man who finds out his wife is cheating on him. To emphasize the show-within-a-show even more, the opera stars with credits rolling, as if in a movie, projected onto a transparent screen in front of the main stage. (In both operas, they at times used a third screen, in front of the actors like a physical fourth wall, in addition to other setting pieces behind or on level with the actors). Meanwhile, the whole play is full of little plots, so no matter where you look, there’s something interesting. There’s a love triangle with girls fighting over the attention of a soldier (but also trying to play hard to get), and the townspeople react to the comedia d’el arte play (I think some of them were crushing on the wife), and things like that. In summary, if you’re in Buenos Aires and get the chance to see an opera by Buenos Aires Lirica, definitely take it up. Well, you know, depending on price; I got in for free.
