earth cay event at war memorial opera house

We grabbed each other's hands and rode it out, like the principals in 'Boheme.'Īt intermission, everybody rushed outdoors. As a young college student from Podunk it got me so excited I dropped out of college to move to San Francisco and become a beatnik.Įditor: When the Earth moved, Mimi didn't miss a beat.īut their love's imperviousness to one of California's seismic events was the only thing that reassured my friends Helen, Patty and me, sitting up there in the balcony, feeling the sway, watching the chandelier quiver. The Opera House is where I left my heart.Įditor: Memories of the Opera House? Boris Christophe in 1957 as Boris Godunov. I have since moved away from San Francisco, but still consider it my home. Swenson has held a truly special place in my heart. I was completely unprepared for such an experience I assumed Domingo would be great and everyone else would sound as they did in Tucson. The magic of her singing overwhelmed me and I could not recall having heard Domingo afterward, such was her effect. It was a great deal more of a climb than I had thought and I was gasping for air when I reached the top, but I got a great place to stand at the center and awaited the arrival of the great Domingo.Īfter the overture, Ruth Ann Swenson made her way onto the stage and began her aria. They were still letting standees in from the main doors in the lobby rather than from the side of the building and I got to join the mad dash up the stairs to the balcony. The War Memorial Opera House is one of the Bay Area’s most sought-after and unique venues, offering modern technology and the ambience of Old World theater.Having been told that the acoustics were the best behind the balcony I decided to head there when the doors opened. With its ornate features and 38-foot ceiling, the grand Main Lobby makes an unforgettable setting for elegant cocktail receptions and sit-down dinners. In addition to opera and ballet performances, the 3006-seat auditorium is available for special presentations, lectures and concerts.

Home of the San Francisco Opera and San Francisco Ballet, the War Memorial Opera House opened in 1932 with TIME magazine declaring it “…a house made possible by all the people of San Francisco.”ĭesigned by Arthur Brown, Jr., the prominent American architect who also created San Francisco City Hall, this cultural landmark is one of the last Beaux-Arts structures built in the United States. Today, the stately building is host to a variety of events.

Earth cay event at war memorial opera house