Teatro Colón - Behind the Scenes
13 May 2018 - Saturday
We signed up for the 3PM tour of Teatro Colón - tras escena (behind the scenes), which is literally next door to Hotel de la Opera, where we are staying.
We began the tour in the salon (not pictured) that was reserved for the social elites. Done in Baroque style with Greco-Roman influences, it was where the wealthy socialized, where they showed off their privilege and power.
Pictured to the right are the box seats and the theater floor seats where there are refurbished vintage seats (a la Marjorie Luke Theater in Santa Barbara). Over the years, these very seats have supported literally thousands of nalgas (a very "cheeky" slang word that I happen to know and that inspired lots of giggles from the Spanish speakers).
To the left, we are gathered in the gatinero (henhouse or cheap seats). These were for the poor people who were not allowed to mingle at all with other patrons. They had their own back stairwell even. Ironically, the gatinero actually have the very best acoustics in the entire theater! As well, before the spectacular ceiling lamp (below) was electric, those in the gatinero could watch the wax drip onto the heads of the people with whom they were not allowed to mingle. Emiliano considers this a kind of social justice.
The tour included a visit onstage, then backstage, then understage where we got to see the 21st century hydraulics (a la Cirque du Soleil). Fabuloso!
I'm bummed that the tickets for the stage production on Sunday (Mothers' Day) of Kinini, La Niña Mariposa was sold out, as it would have been a special M-Day treat to see such a production, especially now that we know how the staging all works.
Kinini, La Niña Mariposa is a magic adventure that includes the message of respect for biodiversity and nature with ten giant puppets (note the large spider web in the photo above of the stage + the spider puppet in the screen shot below).
We signed up for the 3PM tour of Teatro Colón - tras escena (behind the scenes), which is literally next door to Hotel de la Opera, where we are staying.
Our adorable guide, Emiliano, provided the assembled group with an articulate summary of the 125 year history of this amazing theater that, as architecture can, reflects much of the story of Colombian society and politics.
I was charged with translating into English an even briefer summary of Emiliano's summary (lots of dates and numbers and architectural references that are not in my vocabulary in either language) for Ned because, although Emiliano does speak some English, most of the tour participants were native speakers of Spanish not English. We enjoyed it all nonetheless, especially as it reminded us of the backstage tour of Cirque du Soleil that we had with Dina, Ned's daughter.
I was charged with translating into English an even briefer summary of Emiliano's summary (lots of dates and numbers and architectural references that are not in my vocabulary in either language) for Ned because, although Emiliano does speak some English, most of the tour participants were native speakers of Spanish not English. We enjoyed it all nonetheless, especially as it reminded us of the backstage tour of Cirque du Soleil that we had with Dina, Ned's daughter.
We began the tour in the salon (not pictured) that was reserved for the social elites. Done in Baroque style with Greco-Roman influences, it was where the wealthy socialized, where they showed off their privilege and power.
Pictured to the right are the box seats and the theater floor seats where there are refurbished vintage seats (a la Marjorie Luke Theater in Santa Barbara). Over the years, these very seats have supported literally thousands of nalgas (a very "cheeky" slang word that I happen to know and that inspired lots of giggles from the Spanish speakers).
To the left, we are gathered in the gatinero (henhouse or cheap seats). These were for the poor people who were not allowed to mingle at all with other patrons. They had their own back stairwell even. Ironically, the gatinero actually have the very best acoustics in the entire theater! As well, before the spectacular ceiling lamp (below) was electric, those in the gatinero could watch the wax drip onto the heads of the people with whom they were not allowed to mingle. Emiliano considers this a kind of social justice.
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| The spectacular ceiling and lamp - first electric lamp in Bogatá |
I'm bummed that the tickets for the stage production on Sunday (Mothers' Day) of Kinini, La Niña Mariposa was sold out, as it would have been a special M-Day treat to see such a production, especially now that we know how the staging all works.
Kinini, La Niña Mariposa is a magic adventure that includes the message of respect for biodiversity and nature with ten giant puppets (note the large spider web in the photo above of the stage + the spider puppet in the screen shot below).
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