ROH seating question

Bumping this...

yk, are you here? Your boyfriend is doing La Fille du Regiment again in May at the ROH.

I haven't seen the tall fixed seats (though I'm sure they exist).

But I have seen 'tall loose seats'. These are sort of like bar stools that aren't bolted down. So maybe the tall fixed seats are the same only attached to the floor.

(or just maybe they are the old tall loose seats, that were bolted down after too many opera goers fell off mid-aria )

Ha, ha, I'm tall, so "tall fixed seat" sounded like it might be something good. But bar stools nailed to the floor don't sound good at all. And they are pretty expensive seats, too! I think I'll try to stick with normal seats. If they don't all sell out in 0.78 seconds that is.

Hi Apres, I'm HERE! Not sure how I missed this thread the other day!

You're going to London in May for La Fille???

"Tall fixed seat"... I'm trying to remember.... I think those are almost like barstools (with backs). Are these seats in the back row? You may want to give the ROH a call to double-check. Every time I've called, the agents are very nice and very helpful (and knowledgeable).

Usually they do NOT sell out with just Friends booking, unless it's a hugely popular performance (like premieres). Esp with the economy right now, it's not as nuts as years before. But I'd still suggest buying on the first day it goes on sale for the general public.

Which opera are you thinking of and which type of seats? All i can say is I do not recommend the Upper and Lower slips!

[I'm seeing JDF in La Fille at the Met in Feb. ]

BTW, even if the performance you want to see is sold out, you should be able to still get tickets if you check the website daily. People do return tickets; and some hotels return their unsold opera/hotel packages. That's how I got my ticket last Nov for the sold-out Matilde di Shabran - by going to ROH website 5x a day for about 4-5 days, and suddenly one day, seats opened up.

Hi yk!

You're right, the tall fixed seats are in the back row. I guess I'd best avoid them.

I'm actually going to England for a wedding in May and will be spending a couple of days in London before coming home- it just so happens it coincides with my dates. I can't believe my luck! Natalie Dessay is doing Marie so I'm excited to see her too.

Only one performance works for me though- I HAVE to get tickets for a particular night. I'm already obsessing about it and have the sale date in my calendar so I can wake up at 4:30 am...you know the drill. Thanks for the tips about calling the box office.

I was hoping for something good from the Royal Ballet too but no such luck, they're doing Cinderella so major ballet fail.

You must be looking forward to February!

Apres, if all else fails, the ROH sells 67 day tickets on the morning of performance. So, if you can't get tickets at all, you can always use this method. That was my backup plan for Matilde if I failed to obtain tickets in advance. I bought a day ticket once years ago for Otello with Domingo/Te Kanawa.

This is a great blog entry for the ROH tickets:
http://intermezzo.typepad.com/intermezzo/faqs_the_roh_wont_tell_yo.html

Florez/Dessay combo is great. Though the Diana Damrau is getting rave reviews for her Marie (in SF) as well. Damrau is also singing Marie at the Met in Feb.

I don't need to wait until Feb to get my "fix". I'm seeing JDF in Barbiere in LA in December.

Now I'm tempted to go to London next May! I haven't been back for a whole year now (my last London trip was exactly one year ago this week), and I really miss it.

Which specific date are you thinking of? Please be aware that JDF is only singing on May 17, 20, 22, 25, 29; so make sure you aren't thinking of the May 27 performance (sung by Colin Lee - he's good but not as good).

BTW, have you considered seeing Traviata? Dmitri Hvorostovsky is singing the role of Germont. Somehow I think he's your type
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqEn57tVA1s

>>>Somehow I think he's your type<<<

Uh, no. LOL! But I think he's stealing some postmortem mojo from Alexander Godunov:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHCrOUi50SU

Re: JDF's dates- his website says he's doing the 27th but not the 29th

http://www.juandiegoflorez.com/concerts/

Is there different/updated info somewhere? (ROH doesn't have casting posted yet)

I was actually thinking of the 27th, but now that I look at my calendar I could do the 25th.

Damn, Colin Lee's website says he's doing the 27th. I'll have to see what the ROH site says when they post the casts. For now I guess should plan on the 25th to be safe.

But I think he's stealing some postmortem mojo from Alexander Godunov Kidding aside, Hvorostovsky is really good, IMHO.

Yes, the JDF own website hasn't updated the latest info. Those dates I posted above came directly from his agent/manager Ernesto Palacio. But obviously, double and triple check again before you actually buy your ticket. I'm sure the casting will be finalized before Friends' booking opens.

I'm so glad you mentioned the casting dates yk, otherwise knowing me I wouldn't have double checked the casting and then book the one night JDF isn't singing. Thanks for all your advice and the link to that ROH info site.

(Traviata doesn't work with my dates at all so no Alexander Godunov's twin for me)

Apres, just to whet your appetite:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30RqGvwG-50
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vilBS_KAHko (La Fille starts around minute 5)

These 2 clips are part of the Italian TV Loggione opera program, broadcasted just this past weekend.

Thanks yk- he's so tiny and perfect, like a doll.

It looks like youtube is flooded with clips of JDF singing Ah Mes Amis (gee I wonder why). I like this one because it has three solid minutes of the audience going crazy at the end of the aria (and the video cuts them off- who knows how long they carried on for-probably hoping for an encore ):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WdFa6nPlyE&feature=related

I must say I like the Laurent Pelly WWI costumes a lot more than the Napoleonic drag. And I like the maps on the landscape too.

I must say I like the Laurent Pelly WWI costumes a lot more than the Napoleonic drag. And I like the maps on the landscape too.

Yes, that's a wonderful production. The La Fille DVD (ROH/Pelly production) won the 2009 BBC Music Magazine Award for DVD: http://www.bbcmusicmagazine.com/awards-2009-dvd-winner

Casting for La Fille du Regiment has now been posted on the ROH website (obviously they were following this thread and didn't want to risk annoying me any further )

You were right yk, Juan Diego Florez is singing every night except Thursday, May 27th. Thanks again for the heads up because I really might have overlooked that.

Now I can begin obsessing about seating in earnest. I think I'm going to shell out for a good seat and just not eat while in London to make my budget balance out.

Hi Apres, I'm not an expert for ROH, but I think the acoustics is very good at Covent Garden. But if you're thinking of a good seat so that you can have a close-up look at him, well, I guess I can't argue with you there.

I just returned from his recital in Santa Monica, and it was fabulous. It's a nice change from operas, because the venue is so much smaller and intimate. And for once, I can see his facial expressions without opera glasses!

And even though I've heard Ah Mes Amis many times on CDs and recordings, hearing him sing it live tonight is quite an experience! He does it with such ease it's like a walk in the park.

Topping this, Apres_Londee. Don't forget that general booking commences Feb 9 @ 10am GMT.

The Met Opera's La Fille opened last night. Here's the first night review from NY Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/arts/music/08regiment.html

You're in for a real treat. Based on other opening night reviews I've read in the blogosphere, Florez's singing is better than ever.

P.S. The Met Opera will broadcast La Fille LIVE next Sat (Feb 13) starting at 1pm ET. You can search for a local Canadian radio station here: http://www.operainfo.org/stationfinder/
IMO, this is the best way to spend the Valentine's Day weekend!

Hi yk! I've got it in my calender- I'll be waking up early on Tuesday to book the tickets. I'm getting pretty excited about it actually. I've been playing around on the website tonight, practicing I guess lol.

I am definitely going to listen to the live broadcast on radio 2, thanks for the links!

Ah! Mon amie, good luck in the morning. [No pun intended ] Let us know what happened with the online booking!

omg I'm trying to get on the ROH website but it's crashed. I knew it. Everyone is trying to get tickets to see JDF.

Wow, so I finally got onto the website. I'm number 1,875 in queue waiting to buy tickets.

No. 1415 in queue. I'm really nervous because I'm trying to get tickets for opening night. All I can say is, I hope they have a strict limit on the number you can buy. Some scalper jerk is probably scooping them all up.

No. 678 in queue now.

I just got to no. 89 in queue but the website just crashed again. I can't believe it.

Well, the website's back up and now I'm back at no. 1,802 in queue. I'm calling them.

And it's a busy signal. Big surprise.

Well, that was fun. But I got my tickets! Finally got to book them online. And I think they are decent seats, in the center balcony. There were only a few tickets left, no doubt they will be sold out by the end of the day.

Here's the ROH seating plan, might as well leave it here for anyone doing future searches.

https://www.roh.org.uk/uploadedFiles/Assets/PDFs/BP2-0910.pdf

You've got to be kidding me! I can't believe it's that NUTS! I just tried to go on their website, and I'm immediately directed to the waiting room, so I can't even find out if the performance is sold out yet or not.

Your seats sound great. So were you up for 2.5 hrs in the virtual waiting room? It was absolutely awful that the site crashed and you were put back in the end of the queue!

Which day are you going?

Yep. 2.5 hours waiting, plus the website crashed twice and there was nothing but busy signals from the box office phone number. I am so lucky to have gotten tickets at all, let alone decent ones! We're going opening night, Monday 17th (my dates changed around since when I first made this thread)

I just checked the website and JDF's performances are pretty much sold out- there are a couple of 650GP boxes available on a couple of nights but that's it!

I just checked the website and JDF's performances are pretty much sold out- there are a couple of 650GP boxes available on a couple of nights but that's it!

Good job! Persistence paid off! I love opening night - there's so much anticipation and electricity in the air. Enjoy!

So I just found out (from another forum) that some people have 2 or more windows open at the same time, so in case one window crashes, they don't lose their spot in the virtual queue like you did!

*** Filing this info for future use ***

Apres_Londee, how was it? I was thinking of you yesterday!