Milan

Helmut had a job in Milan last week so even though I really could not afford the trip we spent Friday to Monday there together. I have never been, even though it contains the Mecca for any opera fan: the birthplace for many an opera and the artistic home of Maria Callas: La Scala. When we made the plan, I immediately got on the Internet and found two seats for their production of Turandot. So I was excited to discover this city. 

Duomo

The duomo here really is spectacular. I think they have gotten the right balance here, and please forgive me in advance. These churches especially in Italy are amazing museums of art. If the churches teachings are to be believed, and God is everywhere, they could (and do, I might add in some places) have mass in a gymnasium and forego the church entirely. Then they could charge admission to the well-lit, art-filled museum and be better off. Here they have the interior lit with museum quality lights far beyond what the original architects could have imagined. They have one set of lights for the floor level and another close to the top to illuminate the gorgeous sculpting there. They are also in the process of cleaning it entirely both inside and out. I give them credit; they even have a giant video board outside for the duomo but also advertising. 

In nomine padre et filio et spiritus Sanctus. Amen

Shopping area

In the same square, there is the famous shopping center. 

In nomine Gucci et Prada et Giorgio Armani. Enough said. 

The Expo

For those who don't know (and I think that is many, since I don't think the have advertised much in the U.S.), there is an Expo in Milan. It is concentrating on food and energy ( huh; food in Italy...). It has just opened in May and will be here just until October. I would not necessarily make a special trip, but if you are coming to Europe or specifically Italy, it might be worth it. 

We saw a number of exhibits, but the one that stood out for me was Germany. It was by far the most innovative and fun. They give you a cardboard folder that had light sensors and was language specific. Once in the exhibit proper, you held it under lights at specific locations and it showed you videos and information about people and products in modern Germany. I got caught more than once viewing an entire video because both the format and production were so well done. 

I would caution them somewhat on the way the crowds are handled, given their history. They line everyone up, as all pavilions do, but once you get close to the front they form you into a rectangle of rows and columns of maybe 80-100 people. Then they March you into a dark room. It might be too soon. 

The Opera

First, I would not call the physical theater very comfortable. It is tiny (by comparison to the Met, the Palais Garnier or the Opera Bastille) and there are not a lot of places to meander at intermission. The seats are mostly 5 seat boxes that are quite uncomfortable. But there is history here. A good chunk of Bellini, Donizetti, Verdi, Puccini, Mascagni have had their premiers here. 

For those of you interested in such things, they are presenting the Lucio Berio ending to the Turandot. Puccini died as he was writing the work. A contemporary of his, Franco Alfano, used his notes and finished the work in a style so close to Puccini you can't tell what is not his. Berio is a current Italian composer and rewrote the ending as a sort of melange of Puccini's and his own style. Being familiar with the Alfano ending, it was interesting to hear parts I know mixed up, in a different order mixed in with very modern section (vibraphone, anyone?). But it really was not successful as a completion of Puccini's work. Helmut didn't know the work well and thought the whole piece fell apart in the last act. That pretty much says it all. 

Unlike my other recent trip to Prague, I found this to be a real city; a city doing modern things, not just a dead tourist trap. I need to get home and get to work on my next project.