Suki wrote:
<<Next round: I sang "Ah non credea mirarti" from Sonnambula, the tenor sang
"O Paradiso" and then dropped dead of a heart attack.>>
<<Anybody else ever been through this kind of thing? I'm still stunned. >>
I haven't been through this experience exactly, but have had a couple of
similar experiences, though none ending so dreadfully. Last year I was singing
in a semi-staged performance of a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta at a local
church. An elderly member of the congregation was in the audience, and just as
the performance was beginning (the pianist was playing the overture), he fell
unconscious. The pianist continued playing until the overture was completed,
and we ladies of the chorus were waiting for our entrance in the Narthex. The
gentleman fortunately regained consciousness and was helped by his companions
to the Narthex. The ambulance arrived a few minutes later and the gentleman was
examined by the EMS. The ambulance didn't need to take him to the hospital,
but the gentleman was advised to see his personal physician ASAP. Needless to
say, he and his family left, and an announcement was made to the audience, and
the show continued without further incident.
I also sang in the chorus of an opera performance (of Carmen) where our
Escamillo had a very bad case of the flu, but was helped on and off stage with
a minimum of singing so that the opera could proceed. While he was >seated< on
stage, he fainted (he didn't fall - his head went down onto the table), but he
recovered. His wife (the Carmen) said a few lines to him (we were using spoken
text rather than recitative in this performance), he responded, and he was
helped off stage. For the rest of the performance, all the character's musical
numbers were cut, and a "super" was dressed in his costume to speak a couple of
lines in the one place where this was essential. The audience was only told
beforehand of the singer's illness, but otherwise did not know there was
anything amiss with the performance. Only a couple of people who knew the
couple and noticed the wife's distressed expression guessed there was something
wrong. The singer recovered from his illness, and was back to !
!
normal within a week.
Peggy
---
Margaret Harrison, Alexandria, Virginia, USA
mailto:peggyh@i...
"Music for a While Shall All Your Cares Beguile"
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