Cosi Fan Tutte, or, non-dudes are like that

What's good blog fans--An Evening at the Opera with Amac is back! I know everyone's probably dying to hear about the rest of the Ring cycle (since I reviewed the first one a while ago), but I haven't gotten around to seeing the rest of them. Maybe later. I'm actually a much bigger fan of the Buffa style than the Wagner stuff. And so, last night @alison and i saw Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte, which is Italian for Non-dudes are like that.

The original version (premeired 1790 in Vienna if you didn't already know) was set in Naples in the late 18th century, but the production we saw was set in contemporary Washington DC. I was pleasantly surprised with this little twist. Going in, I would have thought the Naples setting would be tight, since you all know how I like archaic language and period costumes, plus I've been to Naples so I could lord over @alison and the people sitting next to us with my superior knowledge about that city. But, I think the contemporary setting actually enhanced the evening, for reasons I'll get in to l8r.

The basic plot is that these two dudes are bragging to their boss, Don Alfonso (what a tight name, btw), that their lady-friends would never cheat on them. Don Alfonso must've gone through some tough relationships, because he thinks all women are fickle and would switch to new dudes rather easily. So, Don Alfonso and the two main characters (I dn't remember their names-something Italian but neither had a name as cool as Don Alfonso, so I'll just call them Bill and Ted) place a bet, whereby Bill and Ted will pretend that they've been called off to war, then dress up like Albanians and try to woo each other's betrothed. Needless to say, hijinks ensue.

The best part of the opera is definetely when Bill and Ted first start wooing the ladies in their disguises. In the contemporary DC-area version, Bill and Ted are not supposed to be Albanians, but instead dress like Todd from Beavis and Butthead, and the ladies (we'll call them Erynn and Gerty) think they're from Adams Morgan. When the ladies rebuff their initial pick up lines, Bill and Ted play the whisker card: in the best song of the show, they sing about their mustaches, and how whiskers measure a man's virtue, strength, dexterity, and wit. It was a rousing number, and convinced me not to shave or trim for several days. You're welcome, @alison.

Like many women have done throughout history, Erynn and Gerty are unable to resist the mustaches, and decide to marry the disguised Bill and Ted. Don Alfonso hires their personal assistant (a maid in the original) to dress up like a lawyer and forge a marriage contract. Just as they sign the contract, Don Alsonso "gets word" that Bill and Ted are coming home from the war a bit early. Erynn and Gerty tell the disguised Bill and Ted to go hide...so they go to another room and then come out of their disguises and everyone laughs out loud at the confusion. Though they were initially mad at the girls for so quickly marrying 2 dudes from Adams Morgan, they just decide to sing "Cosi Fan Tutte" (women are like that lol).

Overall it was a fun opera. The music had a lot of dueling woodwinds (reminded me of mornings at the pinecone...dueling winds lol), and the guy who played Don Alfonso was pretty funny. I also liked the dynamic w/ the two guys--I imagine this opera was an influence for later two-guy duos such as Beavis and Butthead, Bill and Ted, and Wayne and Garth. It's a good show, especiallyif you like mustaches.