Before Salome

Oh dear, was it really back in November that I last posted here? Poor neglected Blipfoto. I'll try to make up for it. Some in the can, but at this stage I barely remember the stories behind them.

Anyway, back to the present. I met two of my music-group mates to see Irish National Opera's (INO) production of Richard Strauss's opera Salome. The performance was in what I stubbornly insist on still calling the Grand Canal Theatre (I can't stand this branding that's all the rage). We met for aperitifs across the square in the Marker hotel.

What a terrific night! INO are going from strength to strength, without a doubt. La Bohème was wonderful (witness my last blip from November). but tonight was even better. It's not an easy opera, musically or in terms of content (based on Oscar WIlde's play) and I wasn't sure until the last minute that I'd even go. I'm delighted that I bit that bullet. Everything was world-class, with Sinéad Campbell Wallace fantastically good in the title role.

We returned to the Marker bar afterwards to compare notes and sing their INO's praises.