I’m a casual opera nerd. My parents have recently become likewise, and this past weekend they came into town for an Aida/Tosca double-bill.

They mentioned after the fact that people in the bathroom were fighting about the production of Tosca. Some people sided with The New York Times review that calls shenanigans on the staging update and points out that the opera got too sexy, and the sets too spare. Other people thought the update was great, and that the detractors were just married to the long-standing Zeffirelli production and couldn’t accept change.

Now, I appreciate the chasm that will inevitably form between old-school opera fans who come back every year to see their favorite shows restaged the classic way, and the new opera fans that opera houses are courting in a desperate attempt to keep from going out of business.

On principle I support the latter. At its heart, the singing and acting of the leads is what makes an opera great, and from all accounts (even the Times), the Tosca in this production is outstanding. My parents raved so much that I’m buying tickets myself. If the corrupt police chief Scarpia gets three buxom ladies to pull a Dracula’s Wives on him when he talks about his dark desires, and it gets people in the door, then no one should complain, right?

Except, this is the publicity still they released for this show:

…because nothing looks more darkly alluring than a photo-op staged like the first half of a gum commercial?

(I don’t care, I’m totally still going.)

(Also, I hope people are still arguing when I go. I get such a kick out of the idea of nicely-dressed middle-aged ladies throwing down over whether or not the staging detracts from the power of the score. Go, ladies, go!)