After all

At any given party full of opera people (and let's face it, that's the only kind I attend), there are a staggering number of conversations going something like this:

Oh, you're from Houston? Do you know ____?
Yes! We were in the same class at Juilliard.
You were at Juilliard? Well then, you must know ____ and ___!
Of course! I love ____. Have you met her sister?
Oh my gosh, we were roommates at Merola!
What a small world.
I know, isn't it?

And so on and so forth. It sounds tedious, and sometimes it is, but I have a pretty high tolerance for it. Opera professionals spend so much time traveling from place to place that it can be difficult to maintain friendships and other close relationships. When we arrive somewhere new, we play the name game so that we can establish connections right away. We're not really strangers if we have a mutual good friend, right? And it gives us something to talk about besides the current show we're working on, which is usually a refreshing change of pace.

Of course, you can only play the game if you're operating in a small enough circle of people. And, given the number of opera training programs and regional companies in this country, it's sometimes surprising just how small the opera world really is. Once you get to a certain level, though, you start seeing the same people over and over, and even the ones you don't see often are all friends with the ones you do.

There are perks to living in such a small world. Chances are, you'll never work somewhere where you don't know anyone, it's mighty helpful when networking, and, best of all, if you feel like summer festival-hopping, you will undoubtedly find friends wherever you want to go.

I took advantage by visiting Central City and Santa Fe last week. At Central City I stayed with Little Miss Hardcore and the Airstream Diva, saw The New Oregonian's show, and ate my body weight in crab legs (yes, crab legs in Colorado, don't judge).

LMH and I drove down to Denver to spend the night at her folks' house and have breakfast with the Hardcore Niece and Nephew, who completely wore me out and then inquired whether I would be returning for Christmas.

Then it was down to Santa Fe, where we stayed in CaliBoy's incredible house, saw The Prodigy's stylish production of Falstaff, and spent most of our time swooning at how naturally gorgeous Santa Fe is. We also had some entertaining adventures, including (but not limited to) The Time a Security Guard at the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum Told Us to Stop Taking Pictures OUTSIDE and Then Forced Us to Erase the Pictures, The Time We Saw a Car Run Into a Building in Downtown Santa Fe, and (my personal favorite) The Time We Got Locked INSIDE the Santa Fe Opera and Had to Climb Over a Bar to Get Out.

Now I'm back in H-town, discovering that the world of people who stay here during the summers just might be the smallest world of all. Friends, come back to town—I have lots of time to hang out with you!

In other news, after some extensive poll-taking, I have decided that a strenuous 6-hour hike does indeed count as an all-day hike.

4 down, 96 to go.