The Opera

Perhaps the most notable experience of our literature course spring semester was our two trips to the LA Opera, one in February and one in March, both trips were to the same opera: Billy Budd. In February we attended the Tech Rehearsal and got to see them slowly work through the first act. It sent me back to my senior year in high school and the tech week for Beauty and the Beast. It was actually more enjoyable to be on the other end than I had thought it was going to be, likely because I had been through that and could appreciate the memories. Afterwards (the two drivers were myself and the other OP Trip Leader in our class) we drove back to campus, stopping at In-N-Out along the way.

Our trip in March however was even more exciting if for no other reason that it was a performance night. We stopped for dinner first at this Asian restaurant, which was quite good. Then we made our way to the Opera House. We dropped everyone off at the front while we spent the next 30 minutes looking for parking. We finally made it in shortly before the Opera started.

Billy Budd (the opera) is credited to Benjamin Britten (the novella being an unfinished novel by Herman Melville, which we read in class). The opera is written in English, though the way it is sung you’d never be able to guess. When we were there for the Tech Rehsearsal, we only got to see the first act. And as it turns out, I was quite glad forthat. The second act has all the action, and the set did things we had no idea it could do the first time we went. The whole stage (of the set) was able to rise about 10 feet into the air, pivoting on its back point. The ending was also much more aggressive than it is usually portrayed as in other variations of the opera.

My favorite scene was at the end when you get to see the main character come out as an old man and stand at attention to the audience while the final, violent actions happen behind him, clearly a memory of his, while poignant music is playing from the orchestra.

Aside from it being my first night out at the opera, the dressing up, the dinner, bringing a friend not in the program with me is what made it fun and worth attending.

The Symposium

The other big event for our honors program this spring was the sophomore symposium at the end of the semester. There’s not too much to say about it, but it was an interesting event. We all wrote three 5 page papers for the class (not counting the 20 page term paper) and we had to select one of them to revise and present to the general public (basically whoever wanted to show up and surprisingly we filled up the room).

I ended up presenting my final paper at the symposium, which was about the imprecision of language and the inherent flaw of language, using the historical account “This Republic of Suffering” by Drew Gilpin Faust and the novella “Billy Budd, Sailor” by Herman Melville.

What made the event marginally more exciting for me was that I was one of the two moderators for the second half. After attending the event, I found that the theory of the event was much more exciting than the practice of it. I couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for the people, especially the students, who had no idea really what any of us were talking about. However, I would be lying if I said it isn’t a little cool to say that I have now presented a paper at an academic symposium.

Until Next Time,

Joe