Phew, the hard exams are finally over! Except for Management of Fashion and Design Companies which I could hit out of the park with one hand tied behind my back. Whenever I say that Hilary is always quick to mention, "As long as it wasn't your right hand." Smart aleck.

I haven't had time or energy to write lately because we've been studying almost every day and even when I wasn't, other people were and thus weren't available for fun-having. In between barricading ourselves in Connor's room for 4 straight days trying to cram International Economics into our head though, we were able to go out and get at least a little fresh air.

The main place we did this was at La Scala Opera House. I know, poor me... Hilary and I saw Assassinio nella Cattedrale on 26.5.09 and then attended the Accademia Teatra alla Scala's capstone performance. The former, translated to Murder in the Cathedral, is based on a play by T.S. Eliot which portrays the assassination of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Cantebury Cathedral in 1170. Though I was only able to understand 50% of the direct lyrics, I gathered that it dealt with an individual's opposition to authority, and more specifically the English's opposition to the Catholic Church. Obviously, it wsa very dark and quite dramatic, peaking with the Archbishop's death being portrayed almost as a martyrdom for his faith.

While the material on stage was exceptional, the overall experience was in iteself, not what I was expecting. We arrived 5 minutes late because 1. after all, anyone fashionable does this without question 2. the trams took FOREVER, new drivers probably, and 3. it's Italy, if you're 20 minutes late, you're early. Unfortunately, these ideas didn't hold true and we were forced to stand until intermission. Lucky me, I was standing next to the only inebriated opera enthusiast in the whole place who felt the need to share his thoughts with me and grab my arm amidst wild swings of imaginary conducting. I know we didn't pay the king's ransom for our seats but I wasn't aware there was a riff raff section at the opera. Also, they wouldn't let us take pictures at intermission. Let the riff raff enjoy their moment.

The next time we went however, it was quite lovely and we were seated in the top tier balcony in perfect range for acoustics and a good view over the edge of the velvet ledge. The program included works by Mozart, Meyerbeer, Rossini, Verdi, Ponchielli, Saint-Saëns, Massenet and Leoncavallo. Similar to Peabody in theory, the academy was talented to be sure, but still on the brink of full confidence. The graduating seniors all received their diplomas on stage before the performance and will go on to bigger and better things in the theatre world. We got the tickets because we had participated in a city-wide interview designed to give Milan tips for improving before they host the World Expo. That said, it wasn't surprising that it was mainly us and parents in attendance. My favorite performance of the evening was an enchanting duet between a beautiful mezzo-soprano and a tenor called "Mon Coeur S'ouvre a Ton Voix" (My heart opens at the sound of your voice) from the opera Samson and Delilah.