Entertainment Week/ly/Pt. 1

It was a birthday week full of live music, and it was all over the place fun.
Yes, child, my birthday. How old you say? You know that store "Forever 21?" It's like that.
First came my Met deflowering, which was a bit intimidating and full of anticipation. It turned out to be a very lighthearted experience, Il Barbiere di Siviglia, I guess, it's a suitable first-time -at-the-Opera experience. And I was escorted by Burns and Earl, which was the equivalent of going on a cruise with Jacques Cousteau. Living encyclopedias that they are.
Being the airhead I am, I was distracted by the chandeliers and the gold leaf wall treatment and the sixties extravagant/severe design of the Metropolitan, yet I managed to be entranced by the show and the goosebump-inducing bravura of Elina Garanca.
Actually understanding the lyrics was a bonus too, as it was recognizing the arias. How ignorant am I? So much of the Barbiere is super-popular and ingrained in Italian culture, but I had no idea where it all came from until I sat down and saw the whole thing. This is gonna sound lame, for example, but I don't mind disclosing: when the orchestra started playing the Overture, it was so obviously familar and hyper-recognizable that I thought it was some sort of "classic greatest hits medley." Like, to warm up the musicians, or to please the illiterate bumpkins like me in the audience. It was cool, y'all. Now I'm itching for a loftier, more "difficult" exposure... you hear me Burr? You opened the floodgates. Ah, pick something that contains gratuitous nudity, too.

Tuesday was Mardi Gras, and Robyn was playing her first live American mini-show at Highline Ballroom. It was, once again, fun.

A shameless pop act that can only be Euro, since nobody really does it over here, R'n'B having become the degraded version of popular music. I never thought about it but I guess Hannah Montana also is an R'n'B artist, isn't she?
Anyway, the place was packed with Scandinavian biological girls of the foreign exchange type, plus generic sisters, bearded sisters and even Scissor Sisters.
The show was quick and minimal, since the libretto is pretty short, but super-energetic. Robyn went through her handful of singles, and cute-cute cover versions including her own Show Me Love. I loved the "industry showcase" format of the event, and cheap price tag was nice too.

Look at that hot mess! Then we went to the Eagle Mardi Gras where we patiently tried to wait, but toasted my birthday several times before Midnight anyway. Yaaay. I managed, as you can see, to make a fool of myself but the "Boys Gone Wild" theme of the night practically begged for it. Troy called in sick the next day. I heroically didn't.

Yesterday the following happened, but that's a whole new post. I think it's interesting that the two events that served as bookends to the week were occasions to wear a tux.

Oh, one last thing: