MARCH 2008

Love In The Latin Quarter

Cowell Theater

The composer Giacomo Puccini once wrote to a friend, “Almighty God touched me with his little finger and said, ‘Write for the theater — mind, only for the theater.’ And I have obeyed the supreme command.” Puccini fulfilled his destiny so perfectly that he composed three of the most popular operas in the repertory. And, hands down, the favorite of the three must be La Bohème, which the San Francisco Lyric Opera presents in four performances this month.

La Bohème has been called the perfect opera, both musically and dramatically. Full of lovely melodies and with a timeless story, it has been performed regularly in opera houses around the world since its premier in 1896. The story of young, struggling artists living and working in the Latin Quarter of Paris in the 1830s resonates with audiences today as much as it did in 1896. In fact, the contemporary musical Rent is based on the story.

Since 1996 San Francisco Lyric Opera has presented operas in traditional stagings and in their original languages with English subtitles. Their mission is to present classical opera at prices most people can afford, so that today’s younger generation will become tomorrow’s opera patron. They also strive to provide a venue for young opera singers to perform.

See and hear the bittersweet love story of Rodolfo and Mimi, Marcello and Musetta, and all the young bohemians when San Francisco Lyric opera presents La Bohème on two weekends beginning March 14. See the calendar listing and visit www.sflyricopera.org for details.

— Jovanne Reilly

(The Lives of the Great Composers by Harold C. Schonberg was used as reference for this article.)

Images:
La Bohème: Darynn Zimmer as Mimi (top), Nathaniel Hackmann as Marcello (bottom)