[Pride and Prejudice] The leisurely life of Miss Bentley

The West End of London is almost synonymous with the British theater world. In just two blocks and less than one square mile, there are more than 40 theaters, large and small.Even if some famous theaters in later generations such as the Royal Shakespeare Theater have not been built at this time, the West End has already taken shape in this era.

It was still the beginning of spring in England at this time, the spring was cold and the sky was still drizzling with light rain.The two carriages of the Kester family stopped outside the Royal Opera House.At this time, there is still a long time before the opera is staged, but the carriages coming and going have already crowded the small street here.

Mr. Kester helped Caroline out of the carriage first.

As soon as she got out of the car, Caroline felt a cold wind blowing towards her face, and couldn't help shivering. Mr. Kester was very considerate, and immediately asked the servant to add a cloak to her, and then sent his sister Keith Miss Te helped her down, and she was very attentive.

The Royal Opera House, which was built in the early 18th century, is well-known even in London's West End, where there are many theaters, and it has a royal and elegant style.Ladies and gentlemen of the upper class in London are naturally attracted to this place, and the Royal Opera House is basically full of classic plays on weekdays.Dido and Aeneas, which was staged here this time, is the representative work of composer Purcell in the Baroque period. It has been staged in the unofficial women's finishing school before, and it is the first time that it is staged in the Royal Opera House as an officially recommended play. .Mr. Kester himself is not very interested in opera, but in order to satisfy the interest of his sister and his friends, he still tried his best to get three tickets.You must know that it is basically hard to get one ticket for this opera, let alone three tickets!

It has to be said that Mr. Kester has shown his brilliance here. The admission ticket itself is not worth mentioning, but he can snatch the admission ticket from the situation where many companies are fighting, and there are still three tickets, which is great. It has demonstrated Mr. Kester's outstanding skills and ability.It's like when male animals court female animals, they always have to show their strength and ability in front of each other.At the same time, the intention to do this also reflects Mr. Kester's intentions.This is really serving multiple purposes, it is really high!

Following the flow of people, Mr. Kester and his party sat down in a separate small box.In the box, milk tea and snacks are thoughtfully prepared for people to take, as well as a few small binoculars, in case the spectators need them.

"Dido and Aeneas" is an opera in three acts, which is not long, about an hour or so.The plot of the story is not very complicated, it tells the love-hate entanglement between Queen Dido of Carthage and her warrior Aeneas.Dido and Aeneas love deeply, but they are blocked by wizards and banshees, and Aeneas finally leaves Dido.Dido mistook Aeneas for betraying her, committed suicide in the grief of her lover's departure, and died in excruciating pain. 1 "Dido and Aeneas" is a tragedy, and the role of tragedy is to tear up beautiful things for people to see. Although it will make people sad, it is more meaningful than comedy.Perhaps the sad ending is more unforgettable, making people feel nostalgic and regretful, and thought-provoking.Perhaps it is thought that the sad story is more aristocratic, and the ending of the comedy is mostly vulgar.It can be said that such a story that ends in tragedy has become the mainstream of the repertoire in the West End of London.

As a result, among the ladies and gentlemen who came here one after another, it is unknown how many came with a genuine appreciation attitude, and how many came for superficial articles.This can be regarded as one of the common problems among London's high society, maybe not just London.There are people who are upright, and there must be people with ulterior motives; there are people who are generous, and of course there are people who are artificial.As the forest grows larger, there are naturally all kinds of birds. As for what kind of birds to appreciate, it is a matter of individual preference.

In fact, the music of the whole opera is very elegant and full of unique artistic temperament, especially at the end of the opera, Dido's aria "When I am lying under the dust" (When I am lying under the dust) can be called a "elegy" with great sadness. ".The melody rises slowly from deep meditation, from weak to strong, and the poignant and mournful aria expresses the last sorrow of Queen Dido, which is hard to let go.

If it is only considered from the plot of the opera, Caroline is quite critical of such a plot arrangement.Not to mention whether the love between the queen and the warrior is reasonable or not, as long as Queen Dido and the warrior Aeneas have more trust and communication, perhaps this tragedy can be avoided.But the existence of opera lies in idealizing the reality of life, and turning fairy-tale ideals into sadness to make people think deeply. Perhaps this is the unique charm of opera.

Of course, in terms of musical singing, the standard of the Royal Opera House is indeed extraordinary.The melody is simple and elegant, and the whole drama exudes a warm and charming charm and natural charm.Love and betrayal, curse and deceit, the fierce conflict between the ugly represented by wizards and banshees and the beautiful represented by Queen Dido and warrior Aeneas all made Caroline and Miss Kester feel a little bit of love. Mesmerized.

While the two ladies were immersed in the opera, Mr. Kester did not pay attention to the opera itself.

Mr. Kester has been a widower for many years. Before that, Mr. Kester was unwilling to find a stepmother for his son because his son was still young.This is also very normal. If you find a stepmother with a kind face and a wicked heart, you will have a sad life in the future; secondly, because the previous marriage is not a good memory, Mr. Kester is also afraid that he will "unfavorable people" Shu", it is really difficult for me to find a lady who is suitable in all aspects.The acquaintance with Miss Bingley was purely an accident, and it was even more unexpected for Mr. Kester to show interest in this lady.In fact, when Miss Bingley rescued Miss Kester and helped his younger sister in many ways in the college, Mr. Kester felt that this lady was pure-hearted and cared a lot about her (after all, he owed a lot of money to her). A great kindness, always looking for an opportunity to repay it).Afterwards, under contact on various occasions, Mr. Kester felt more and more that this lady was really nice, but he didn't think much about it.It's just that his younger sister, Miss Kester, always mentioned his good friend in front of him, and Mr. Kester was slightly moved, but because of his own identity, he really lacked the courage to speak up.

So, a family of women is begging, what you get, Mr. Darcy, does not mean that others will not see it, love for a long time can only be carried out in the absence of competitors, so let's hurry up now...

This time, Mr. Kester invited Miss Bingley to watch the opera with the help of his younger sister, Miss Kester.On the one hand, Mr. Kester thinks that Miss Bingley is very good, she is very devoted to what she likes, not pretending, not pretentious, and not artificial; .

Naturally, Caroline didn't think too much, or she didn't want to think too much. If everything was sensitive and meticulous, like Miss Daiyu, she had to go through all the twists and turns in her heart first, then she wouldn't be exhausted to death!So Miss Daiyu vomited blood with hatred, her soul died early!If you don’t think too much about everything, you will worry less, otherwise if you are sentimental, others will think you are being sentimental!

This kind of thinking... Cough, it can only be said that there are good and bad, the nature of the thick and the thick of the nerves, "stupid people can also have stupid blessings"!

Mr. Kester's inner OS, Caroline can't feel it, let alone Miss Kester who has more nerves.

Because... Caroline was looking at the opposite box with a strange face, feeling that this world is really wonderful.

Like dance dramas and concerts, operas have prescribed breaks between acts.In the meantime, gentlemen and ladies can take a break, or talk to each other, or have some refreshments.

Caroline picked up the binoculars and looked at the stage while exchanging her thoughts on the opera with Miss Kester.Her purpose was to take a closer look at the scenery and decorations on the stage, but unexpectedly, she saw a surprising scene: in the small box opposite, there were two pairs of people who surprised her.

The first couple were seated in a small box diagonally above the stage, a combination that really surprised Caroline.There is nothing unusual about this small box, but it is enough to attract the attention of Colonel Fitzwilliam who has not seen for a long time and Miss Cavendish who has become famous recently!How these two people got together is really interesting, interesting!

Was Colonel Fitzwilliam now courting Miss Cavendish?Doesn't he know the current situation of the Cavendish family?And didn't Miss Cavendish understand that Colonel Fitzwilliam had no right of succession?Isn't it too risky to bet your happiness on such a person?

But looking at it from a distance, Colonel Fitzwilliam and Miss Cavendish were talking and laughing at Yanyan, didn't they seem to be reluctant?Could it be that she was wrong? !

There is another pair, there is nothing special about the combination, but the occasion is wrong. Shouldn't they be drinking afternoon tea in the mansion on Grovener Street?Who can tell her why her brother and Mr. Darcy appear at the Royal Opera House? !

My brother is obviously not interested in opera, so Mr. Darcy dragged him along?

Also, didn't it mean that tickets for "Dido and Aeneas" are hard to come by, and where did they get the tickets? !

Caroline felt that she was messed up in the wind!

The author has something to say: 1 You can refer to the detailed content of "Dido and Aeneas", it is indeed a rare classic play~~~