So Luc is back on his feet and raring to go. We’ve bid a fond farewell to my new friend Gerard Powers, who did a fantastic job on Thursday night and Saturday afternoon. And the reviews have started coming in. It has gone so much better than we dared hope.
From the Victoria Times-Colonist…
Good review indeed! The behind-the-scenes stuff really is fascinating. So, you will be letting us know if and when you perform in Calgary, right? 
Congratulations. It’s nice when things go seamlessly, but it’s at times like these, when things have gone pear-shaped and gotten turned into pear pie, that one must say “bravo!”
Could you hear us applauding? We were in the balcony, left side (good seats, actually). We braved the winds and the frigid temperatures for the opera. Very, very enjoyable performance. Methinks Mimi looked quite healthily robust, but she died so quietly. I’m afraid I was quite teary by the end. Congratulations on the production! It was really neat to see you sing two roles in one performance. Puccini is gorgeous, eh?
I’m glad you enjoyed it. Boheme, especially, is a show I avoid listening to because I don’t ever want to get sick of it. The wit of the dialogue is beautifully matched by the wit in the score. Even in bizzaro productions where it gets updated to a post-Zombie apocalypse undersea grotto, the music and the text win out. I love doing it.
And I’m so glad my friend Luc is back on his feet - it was strange to see him so down while he was sick. He’s back to the irrepressible nut I first met in 2002.
Hey, next time come backstage and say ‘Hi’. There’s a whole truckload of really interesting people who do the operas in Victoria. (Other than me - I’m boring.)
When I did High School theater, the Director and other faculty advisors sat in the audience on performance nights. All onstage and backstage aspects of the show were handled by students, so we wouldn’t have had a big problem with the situation you describe. I wonder now how unique that practice is/was.
Le Ministre de l’au-delà, this was a great inspirational story. Congratulations on your show’s success!