Before Salome

Oh dear, was it really back in November that I last posted here? Poor neglected Blipfoto. I'll try to make up for it. Some in the can, but at this stage I barely remember the stories behind them.

Anyway, back to the present. I met two of my music-group mates to see Irish National Opera's (INO) production of Richard Strauss's opera Salome. The performance was in what I stubbornly insist on still calling the Grand Canal Theatre (I can't stand this branding that's all the rage). We met for aperitifs across the square in the Marker hotel.

What a terrific night! INO are going from strength to strength, without a doubt. La Bohème was wonderful (witness my last blip from November). but tonight was even better. It's not an easy opera, musically or in terms of content (based Oscar WIlde's play) and I wasn't sure until the last minute that I'd even go. I'm delighted that I bit that bullet. Everything was world-class, with Sinéad Campbell Wallace fantastically good in the title role.

We returned to the Marker's bar afterwards to compare notes and sing ther INO's praises.