Chapter 91: Eve of the Performance
"What is Jia Na up to? Someone who never engages in any entertainment or leisure activities actually gave me tickets to the Nightingale Opera Troupe's weekend show—"
Looking at the luxurious ticket with the three large, gilded characters "VIP Seat" printed on it, Vivian felt strange, but also couldn't help but feel happy.
After all, this was a ticket to "blood shadow rose," which was being snapped up like crazy in Turin. Moreover, it was for the most precious weekend show.
Although with Vivian's financial means, she wouldn't be unable to afford it, without internal connections, it would be difficult to get a VIP seat ticket like this, where it's "first come, first served."
"Speaking of which, how did Jia Na get this ticket? Could it be that she knows someone internally?"
Thinking of the group of admirers who usually surrounded Jia Na, there were definitely family members among them who could get VIP seat tickets for the Nightingale Opera Troupe's weekend show. However, based on Vivian's understanding of Jia Na, she was certain that Jia Na was someone who would absolutely not accept anything related to material wealth or money from others.
"Jia Na told me before that she's been working a part-time job recently, could it be—"
Looking at the large characters "Nightingale Opera Troupe" on the VIP seat ticket and then thinking of Jia Na's soul-stirring face, a certain absurd conjecture made Vivian's expression become increasingly strange.
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could something so ridiculous happen—"
The thought of Jia Na, who usually only stayed in the library or shuttled between different classes, performing on stage as an opera actress was a scene that Vivian, as Jia Na's acquaintance, simply could not imagine.
"Welcome to the Nightingale Opera Troupe, madam. Please show your ticket."
While Vivian was lost in thought, she had unknowingly walked up to the entrance of the gorgeously decorated Nightingale Opera House.
"Here you go."
"VIP Seat twenty-seven, please follow me."
Unlike the long queue for entering ordinary seats, Vivian, who had a VIP ticket, was directly led into the inner hall through the side door by the female attendant at the entrance.
"Quite a lot of people."
As soon as she passed through the side door into the inner hall, she saw that the vast theater, with nearly fifteen hundred seats, was already full. Heads were bobbing, and the clamoring human voices were so loud that Vivian felt a bit dizzy.
"Today is the premiere of 'blood shadow rose' on the weekend, so there are more people—this way, please."
Led by the female attendant, Vivian quickly saw her seat in a front row location.
"Since the main hall is already full, are the people still queuing outside waiting for the next show?"
Looking at the VIP seats, which were also almost full, Vivian couldn't help but feel a little confused.
"There is only one performance of 'blood shadow rose' today. To allow more people to see the show, the theater has specially opened the seats on the second floor today."
Hearing the female attendant's explanation, Vivian looked up and saw figures entering the second floor seats, which were further back and away from the stage.
"It's really popular—"
Following the seat number on her ticket, Vivian quickly found her seat.
"Hmm? Why is there a flyer here?"
As soon as she sat down, Vivian saw a flyer on the armrest next to her seat, which contained the same content as the life-sized promotional stand at the theater entrance.
"We have the best Natasha—"
As someone who also enjoyed watching operas, Vivian naturally knew that the Natasha referred to on the flyer was the name of the protagonist in "blood shadow rose." And the actress playing Natasha was Anna-Moonshadow, a skilled actress well-known in Turin and even in many Wizard Gathering Places.
Although Vivian didn't understand opera very well, Anna-Moonshadow's brilliant performance still deeply moved her. This was also why she came to watch the complete "blood shadow rose" content a second time after seeing it.
"It's just a pity that Anna doesn't appear until the second act—I wish she could perform from beginning to end."
2
If Vivian remembered correctly, the actress who played Maiden Natasha in the first act seemed to be an actress named Freya. Although this person's performance was also good and she was quite pretty, Vivian still felt that compared to Anna-Moonshadow, the actress named Freya acted too weakly, creating a sense of disconnect from the Natasha played by Anna-Moonshadow.
"Never mind, the plot of the first part is quite interesting anyway. As long as I get through it, I'll see Anna soon."
Huh?"
Just as Vivian was preparing to quietly wait for the performance, she saw a familiar figure in the front row VIP seats.
"Isn't that Suo Luo-Lie Yan from the third year? Does he also like watching operas?"
Seeing Suo Luo-Lie Yan not wearing his usual knight attire today, but instead a relatively formal men's suit, Vivian almost didn't recognize him.
"The person next to him also looks a bit familiar, seems to be—Richard-Eva!?"
As Grace-Eva's younger brother and the president of the Bai Wu Xie Club, Richard-Eva's reputation within White Coral Academy was much greater than that of Suo Luo-Lie Yan next to him.
But what she didn't expect was that these two senior apprentices, who were already prominent figures in the academy, would actually have the leisure to watch an opera here. This didn't quite fit Vivian's stereotype of these people.
"I thought people like them only knew how to explore secret realms and had no time for entertainment or rest—just like Jia Na." Thinking of Jia Na, Vivian felt a bit annoyed again. Today should have been the two of them coming to watch the opera together, but in the end, only she, the one who was given the ticket, arrived on time, while the one who gave the ticket stood her up.
"Forget it, I'm used to it anyway. It's a great opera, and it's fine for me to watch it alone—"
Bang—Just as Vivian was comforting herself, suddenly, the main doors closed, and the lights in the theater hall dimmed. Only a spotlight remained in front of the red curtain on the stage, drawing everyone's attention involuntarily as the light moved towards the female host standing in front of the stage, dressed in a formal gown with a neat hairstyle.
"Distinguished guests, hello. I am Zhu Li-Ann, the announcer for the Nightingale Opera Troupe tonight. Next, 'blood shadow rose,' created by David-Berg and directed by Crane-Roland, will officially meet everyone. During this time, to ensure your perfect viewing experience, please remain quiet throughout. Thank you for your cooperation—"
The dimmed lights, like a nocturnal curtain, slowly brought silence to everyone in the theater.
As Zhu Li-Ann exited, the crimson curtain slowly opened accompanied by cheerful music. The lights were dazzling, heads were moving, and the grand stage scene instantly captivated everyone's attention. "Who is that actress!?"