The Sound of Figaro

Inside Nonnberg Abbey

I’ve been meaning to update more than I have. Every time I sit down to write though, I can’t seem to articulate what I want to say. I’ve been astounded in the past few days being in Salzburg. I came into Salzburg primarily excited about the prospective of being in the city where The Sound of Music was filmed but Salzburg has so much more to offer than that. While, yes, it has been priority for me to see many of those filming locations, I’ve also taken time to just explore the area as the small city it is. Though I’ve caught a bit of a cold, it seems, I’ve tried to not let it diminish the quality of the trip. We’ve only got 4 days left in Europe and while I’m more than ready to go back to my own comfy bed and my closet full of clothes, it’s slightly heartbreaking to leave. I think about all the things I haven’t seen and wish I could but at this point, I don’t think my legs could withstand it. 

Bridge from The Sound of Music 

The Sound of Music was one of those movies that changed me growing up. Aside from my passion of music that came from that movie, ideas about love, friendship and perseverance I also learned from that movie. I was captivated not only by sound of Julie Andrew’s musical voice but by her stubborn, fun loving and nurturing character of Maria. I used to dream of a love like Maria and the Captains or the playful romance of Rolf and Liesl. It sounds silly to say aloud but knowing that I’ve walked over the bridge where the children and Maria ran across or seen the fountain where Maria splashes water makes me feel giddy. It’s like my childhood brought to life.


We saw The Marriage of Figaro in the same venue where, my favorite song, Edelweiss was filmed. I was already excited over that fun fact but the performance itself was astounding. A funny thing happened before the performance. Dr. Powell had given us our tickets earlier in the day and when I arrived at the venue, I saw that Abby’s and my seats were, in the first row, but on the very end of the far left section. As soon as I stood where I was supposed to sit, I could see that there was going to be an obstruction to the view of the stage. Not a big deal to me, but knowing that the performance was going to be three hours long made it feel a little disappointing. Then, out of nowhere, a nice couple came up to me and asked if they could switch seats with Abby and I. At first, I wondered why anyone would want to sit in seats that were so far away from the center of the stage where all the action was about to go down. Abby and I agreed and traded seats with this nice couple. The man lead us to where his seats were: still in the front row but practically in the middle of the stage. I could see everything now. I can’t believe how lucky I was. I found out later that the tickets they had switched us from were worth 215 euro!

Mozart Statue -- the Man of the Week

Though the performance was over three hours long, it was beautiful. By the third act, I was starting to get a little antsy. I found myself twiddling my thumbs or not reading the translations and just watching the performers sing. I had this moment during the finale of the fourth act. though. The culmination of seeing all the performers on stage, singing made me feel overwhelmed. I noticed that my mouth was slightly hung open. The actress singing Susanna was standing in front of me along with the lead, Figaro. And…. This feeling suddenly hit me. I was in awe. I was starstruck. I don’t know how to describe what changed in that moment but I felt a feeling I’d never felt while seeing a performance. To see so much astounding talent was truly amazing and to be in the front row right in front of them was something I suppose I had never thought I would ever do. In days before, we had seen an orchestral performance where people left jaw dropped and while I thought that performance was amazing, I didn’t leave with that same feeling. During that last finale of Figaro, I knew. I understood how they felt. And I suppose I’ll be waiting a lifetime for more moments like that.

Only four days left (and three blog posts to write)! ~S