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83Madame Butterfly's Pets
He called her his "Madame Butterfly," always with an affectionate chuckle as he quickly amended that nickname, with: "Hmmm . . . . I mean Madame Ailanthus." It was long time joke between them, one she...
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75Opera plots - Puccini's Tosca
There are not too many laughs in Tosca, which is based on a drama by the French playwright Victorien Sardou, set in Rome in 1800. The play was first performed in 1887, and it first attracted the attention of...
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75Mediaeval towns: Lucca
If France has its Carcassonne, Italy has nothing to envy with its mediaeval town of Lucca in Tuscany. We were travelling along the coast of Italy, when attracted by the word "mediaeval town" we decided to...
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72Opera plots - Puccini's Madame Butterfly
This is one of the best-known and loved of all operas, both for its superb music and its plot, a tragedy of broken faith in which the whole audience longs to scream out to Butterfly, "don't trust him!" The...
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74Vera Bradley Handbags Are Among the Most Popular Bags
There is an undeniable charm to a Vera Bradley bag. That's why they're so popular and sought after. With a variety of feminine and flowery fabrics, in colors that make even the dreariest day seem sunny, Vera...
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71Opera plots - Puccini's La Boheme
The willing suspension of disbelief is required for any dramatic performance, but this seems to be especially so in the case of opera. For one thing, people just don't go around singing at each other, at...
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71Opera plots - Puccini's Turandot
The plots of great operas are often difficult to fathom, partly because opera composers are generally more interested in writing great music than telling a believable story. The plot is merely a peg on which...
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67My Favorite Opera Arias and Duets
This Italian opera, Turandot, was unfinished by Giacomo Puccini. He suffered from throat cancer and died from a heart attack before he could finish it. Franco Alfano, a friend of Puccini, completed the score,...
7 comments
65Five Incredible Pavarotti Moments
Words do Pavarotti no justice. He is an emblem as an artist, his music has coursed the world in a series of musical shock-waves. I am not an expert, but the beauty of Pavarotti is you don't have to be. Here...
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62La Divina Maria Callas
Dramatic astonishing talents of being able to make her audience, that she controlled to embrace each emotion she sang and her musical ability caused her to be hailed as; La Divina; Maria Callas. Born in...
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