Librettos and arias were the focus at the Washington National Opera Opening Night Gala at the Italian Embassy.
By Kevin Chaffee, Photos by Kyle Samperton
Cathy and Paul Williams at the Washington Opera Opening Night Gala. Photo by Kyle Samperton.
Patrons carried the title theme of Giuseppe Verdi’s “Un Ballo in Maschera” one step beyond the usual Washington pale by donning masks at a lively Venetian-style gala hosted by Italian Ambassador Giulio Terzi di Sant’Agata and Antonella Cinque. Whether beaded, brocaded, plastic, or silk, lots of “new faces” made the scene in unique and amusing ways – despite scant time to pose and preen before the post-performance dinner dance got underway around 11 p.m. Newly-sworn-in Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan made this masked- affair her first appearance at a high-end social event at behest of senior colleague Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Local VIPs Adrienne Arsht, Robert and Susan Lehrman, and Lucky Roosevelt also showed up to celebrate Washington Opera’s sesonal debut.
