FIRST, the bad news ..

Aeros lost to Milwaukee 3-5, Texas Stars lost to Peoria 3-6.. a night of threes for the 2 Texas teams. Alas, NIE, which in German means never, could not do it. But perhaps next time he will say NEVER.

BUT, on the opera front at 'ALO'-Austin Lyric Opera it was *s all around!

A rarely performed opera bouffe by Emmanuel Chabrier "L'Etoile", The Star, was a success. The spoken parts were in English, the arias en Francais, the scenery sparkling and well lighted, the costumes quaint even a bit outre.

Singers: Le Roi OUF Jean-Paul Fouchecourt is a charming French tenor, well known for his Santa Fe creation of PLATEE a couple years back. His bright tenor shone brilliantly at times, his remarkably good English with a soupcon of a Gallic accent made the dialogue even funnier. Ouf likes to entertain the masses with impalings! So they sing an outrageous ode to impalement" Le Pal est de tous les supplices le Principal et le plus fecund en delices". OUF I say!

Mezzo Soprano Deborah Domanski (also seen at Santa Fe 2 years back in Radamisto, when she went in to cover a role at last minute and did it to huge acclaim) had a glorious night in the trouser role of the infatuated Lazuli, whose fate is linked to the king's -Lazuli dies, one day later the king dies, and 15 minutes after HIS death his astrologer Siroco, also dies. And in preparation to their imminent death both, OUF and SIROCO, get royally soused on Green Chartreuse accompanied by the funniest song in praise of "Le Chartreuse Vert"!
Tapioca, the ambassador's secretary, sung by Texan baritone John Boehr, Aloes, ambassador's wife sung by Texan Mezzo Liz Cass, Ambassador Herisson de Porc-Epic, also sung by a Texan, tenor Brian Joyce, were adequate and performed well, singing, acting and even their dancing routines were done well. The light soubrette soprano Nili Riemer (Israel) chirped saucily and looked 'cute' in her role of the princess Laoula (in love with Lazuli, to be married to OUF, pretending to be married to ambassador (for raisons de diplomatie!?) and also pretending to be traveling salesgirl in a store's perfume department. As did all of the last 4.
The plot, you can readily see, is convoluted and irrational.
The music - a mix of occasionally Wagnerian swells, mostly however reminiscent of Jacques Offenbach's comic operas - was conducted by Richard Buckley, however with less than Gallic verve, IMO.
The chorus men and women did well in their 'broadway type' routines, trying hard to look like chorus members dancing the Can Can..with modestly raised skirts LOL.
Parodies and satires of class mores and manners alternate swiftly with pure slapstick comedy in this production ably directed by Alain Gauthier (as a Canadian he - one assumes - did bring some Gallic humor to this).
Anyway it is to be hoped that other opera companies take the plunge (Lazuli dives into a lake to escape his pursuers and emerges 'drippingly' with a head cold and sneezes) to produce this truly light, but so funny operatic comedy.
Easy digestible music, a plot so crazy it IS again funny....and one can 'pan' all kinds of events, if so desired, within the frame work of the "plot" to update this piece of Frou Frou to current times' happenings.
Only one more performance on Sunday 2/7.
Despite having a quite terrible time getting lost on the maze of Austin's highways and byways, we had NO problem finding the arena LOL, but getting from there to our Hyatt, from the Hyatt to Long Center (Opera) and back, well, we certainly saw "Austin by Night".
Lots of Austin by Night!! ;-), ;-)!!!!!