Do they bounce?

Over the last thirteen weeks, we’ve been enjoying a daily opera from the Met. Every day a different performance is uploaded, free to view for 24 hours and each afternoon having completed whatever tasks we have on our lists, we settle down to watch.

Yesterday I counted. We have watched over 90 different operas since the lockdown began.

I know. I very much doubt that I could have listed 90 opera titles without a struggle till now, even though I’d count both of us as fans: One of our first dates was to see Don Carlos at the Coliseum in London a very long time ago!

Each week as the programme has been uploaded, we’ve been looking out for one opera in particular; one we missed when it was shown in cinemas last year (we were in Pittsburgh). We were thrilled to see it appear at last and settled down for the adventure that is Philip Glass’s Akhnaten.

During the cinema presentations and trailers, we’d seen previews of rehearsals for Akhnaten and learned of the challenges faced by the cast who were learning to juggle as part of their role. We heard clips of counter-tenor Antony Roth Costanzo rehearse a haunting melody and caught glimpses of amazing set and costume designs.

This was not going to be any ordinary opera, that was for sure.

Yesterday afternoon a text from our friends asked “are you all set for Akhnaten then?”

We were!

From the moment it started with the young king walking ever-so-slowly down a steep flight of steps we were mesmerised. Quite how he managed to make such an entrance in front of an opera house audience of four thousand and however many millions who watch live around the world is a mystery to me - and I didn’t mention that he was dressed only in his pants! The next couple of hours was an audio and visual spectacle unlike anything we’d seen before and we loved every minute. We’d wondered about the juggling though - was it going to be a bit of a gimmick? Not one bit. The jugglers managed to control the balls perfectly in rhythm to the music and in absolute synchronicity with one another. How? I have no idea.

And did the balls bounce?

I was watching so closely and didn’t see a single one fall, so I don’t know! But if you watch the video above closely, you’ll see the answer!