Nerissa 1996-2009
It is with sadness that I have to tell you of the passing of Nerissa, Portland Opera's company cat. She came to the Opera in 1996 at a time when The Merchant of Venice by Reynaldo Hahn was in production. She was named Nerissa after a character in that opera. Now, that's a pretty name for sure but in both Shakespeare's play and Hahn's opera, Nerissa is a ladies' maid - and this cat was nobody's maid, believe me! Proud and independent, she walked the halls as though she owned the place. Actually, if you could have asked her I am sure she would have told you that, as far as she was concerned, she did own the place. If there is such a thing as a diva cat, that was Nerissa. Her principal domain was the costume shop where she permitted the costume mistress Francis Britt and others to adore her while she lay on her cushion. As she got older Frances, Rae Minten and others did everything possible to make her comfortable. Inevitably the time came when that was no longer possible. Frances, to you and Rae and everyone at the Portland Opera who will miss Nerissa, please understand that we share your sadness and hope you will take comfort from the fact that we all know Nerissa could not have been more loved or better cared for. Ciao, bella!

New York City Opera

Opera In the Park
For the last two or three years I have been meaning to make a trip to the amphitheater in Washington Park during the summer for one of the outdoor opera performances that form a part of the annual Portland Summer Fest. Each year it has somehow got away from me. This year I have a friend, Diane, whom I am re-introducing to opera and this year's performance of La Traviata seemed like a perfect opportunity. Diane was raised around opera. Indeed Maria Callas was a good friend of her mother and would spend many weekends with her family. Apparently, our beloved diva was an inveterate muncher of Milky Way bars and a package of them would be kept for her in the freezer. "Woe betide me if I took one of Maria's stash!" Diane told me (admit it - don't you just adore little tidbits like that? I find them quite irresistible). Anyway, after many years away from opera, Diane is taking the opportunity to familiarise herself with it once more so last Friday she assembled a delicious picnic for us, gathered up a couple of folding chairs and off we went for an outdoor evening of love, hookers, family drama and death - standard opera fare.

We arrived at Washington Park a little more than an hour before kick-off time to secure ourselves prime viewing and listening positions. While we were certainly in time to get a good spot we were by no means the first arrivals and it was fun to sit and people-watch while we nibbled on fresh strawberries and sipped cold lemonade. Our forethought in arriving early paid off handsomely as by 6pm, the scheduled time for curtain-up, had there been a curtain, nearly 3000 fans eagerly awaited the arrival onto the rostrum of maestro Keith Clark.