Tammy and I went to see Austin Lyric Opera’s production of Carmen Thursday night. Unfortunately I had the poor judgment to go and get sick the night before. I doped myself up before and enjoyed the show as best as I could, as we could not exchange tickets. Seeing as it was my first opera, I don’t have anything to compare it to but I thought the show was great.
The production was at Austin’s new Long Center for the Performing Arts and I must say that the worst part of the entire spectacle was the parking disaster that ensued after the show. Parking has been a problem since the Long Center opened. Carmen opened last weekend with the Reggae Festival right across the street and by the time the show was to start, the parking garage was long since filled by reggae dudes (including us!). This meant that hundreds of opera goers couldn’t find parking at all. Kelso tried to find a silver lining in the debacle.
Of course Thursday night there was little competition so parking wasn’t a problem. What was a problem was getting out of the garage after the show. We literally sat in the car motionless for 15 minutes while the garage cleared out beneath us and finally got out 25 minutes after getting in the car. The lesson: either move quick when the fat lady sings or relax on the City Terrace for a bit after the show.