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Article: Western wanderings: our man in San Francisco. (resurgence of the opera in San Francisco, California)
- Article from:
- Sunset
- Article date:
- September 1, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 Sunset Publishing Corp. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The cult of opera
A few years ago, a friend attended the San Francisco Opera's production of Bellini's I Puritani. The soprano June Anderson starred. My friend was a fan of Ms. Anderson's, but on this occasion she found the performance lacking - so lacking, in fact, that at intermission she decided to leave.
My friend walked out onto Van Ness Avenue. Sitting cross-legged on the sidewalk was a homeless man. As my friend walked past, he looked up at her. Had she enjoyed the opera, he asked. No, my friend said, she had not.
"Ah yes," the man sighed. "I understand that Miss Anderson was not at her best this evening."
My friend insists this story is ...