Oh Wow...
After a little oblique verbal prompting from Blue, I took Thursday and Friday off work to fit in with his plans for my (early) birthday.
Thursday I got to sleep in and wander down to get a new haircut (razored bob with ruby flash) from the talented Miss Chai, then laze around all afternoon. The evening started with my donning a luscious new gown (triple-jersey plunge-front with interwoven back detail) and the cherry red Shanghai-in-the-Forties jacket, silk gloves and patent leather handbag (both vintage from the Forties too) and knee-high latex stilettos. Faaaaab.
A leisurely dinner at Friends at the Hyatt was followed by a concert by Bryn Terfel. The greatest living baritone in the world, who played Wotan in Der Ring Des Niberlungen for the Royal Opera House last year!
Not only did Blue manage to get A reserve seats for the one-night-only performance, but they were front row centre. I must've been no more than five metres from the man himself - when he hit the high notes I could see his throat muscles flex. And he was such a sweet fellow; there was an anecdote about cloning Mozart, and one about discovering that the apartment above Handel's house in London had been owned by Jimi Hendrix. He had the audience in stitches as he wandered the aisles singing to various ladies with a rose and the Serenade from Don Giovanni, then made us all sing along to the Toreador's Song from Carmen. And he gave two encores! Two! (It was also his birthday, so the backstage staff gave him a teeny little cake with a candle, much to our amusement.)
Still in dreamyplace from it. Purrrrr..
For at least a week, this will silence my perpetual internal soundtrack. (Mister Gahan can't compete with a classically trained baritone, I'm afraid.:P)
Best. Birthday. Ever.*
*Since my sixteenth. When I was introduced to oysters, caviare and foie gras over the course of a four-hour Degustation.
Thursday I got to sleep in and wander down to get a new haircut (razored bob with ruby flash) from the talented Miss Chai, then laze around all afternoon. The evening started with my donning a luscious new gown (triple-jersey plunge-front with interwoven back detail) and the cherry red Shanghai-in-the-Forties jacket, silk gloves and patent leather handbag (both vintage from the Forties too) and knee-high latex stilettos. Faaaaab.
A leisurely dinner at Friends at the Hyatt was followed by a concert by Bryn Terfel. The greatest living baritone in the world, who played Wotan in Der Ring Des Niberlungen for the Royal Opera House last year!
Not only did Blue manage to get A reserve seats for the one-night-only performance, but they were front row centre. I must've been no more than five metres from the man himself - when he hit the high notes I could see his throat muscles flex. And he was such a sweet fellow; there was an anecdote about cloning Mozart, and one about discovering that the apartment above Handel's house in London had been owned by Jimi Hendrix. He had the audience in stitches as he wandered the aisles singing to various ladies with a rose and the Serenade from Don Giovanni, then made us all sing along to the Toreador's Song from Carmen. And he gave two encores! Two! (It was also his birthday, so the backstage staff gave him a teeny little cake with a candle, much to our amusement.)
Still in dreamyplace from it. Purrrrr..
For at least a week, this will silence my perpetual internal soundtrack. (Mister Gahan can't compete with a classically trained baritone, I'm afraid.:P)
Best. Birthday. Ever.*
*Since my sixteenth. When I was introduced to oysters, caviare and foie gras over the course of a four-hour Degustation.