An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. It starts in read more

An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. It starts in my imagination, it becomes my life, and it stays part of my life long after I've left the opera house.

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of
bleeding, he sings.

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of
bleeding, he sings.

Going to the opera, like getting drunk, is a sin that carries its own punishment with it.

Going to the opera, like getting drunk, is a sin that carries its own punishment with it.

If you can sell green toothpaste in this country, you can sell opera.

If you can sell green toothpaste in this country, you can sell opera.

But to me the actual sound of the words is all important; I feel always that the words complete the read more

But to me the actual sound of the words is all important; I feel always that the words complete the music and must never be swallowed up in it.

Opera: the graveyard of melody

Opera: the graveyard of melody

I wouldn't mind seeing opera die. Ever since I was a boy, I regarded opera as a ponderous anachronism, almost read more

I wouldn't mind seeing opera die. Ever since I was a boy, I regarded opera as a ponderous anachronism, almost the equivalent of smoking

Give me a laundry-list and I'll set it to music.

Give me a laundry-list and I'll set it to music.

Critics complained it wasn't opera, it wasn't a musical. You give someone something delicious to eat and they complain because read more

Critics complained it wasn't opera, it wasn't a musical. You give someone something delicious to eat and they complain because they have no name for it.