Last night we went to the Royal Opera House to see Der Rosenkavalier. My husband and I decided last year that this was our birthday present to each other. As this Opera is not available so often and demand is high so the tickets were the most expensive we have ever purchased. The production costs must be enormous , the cast, orchestra and set were magnificent. I was a little daunted by the length of the Opera....in three Acts and some 4 hours. I needn't have worried as time passed very quickly as we were thoroughly engrossed.
ROH is undergoing extensive refurbishment, however disruption was kept to a minimum. The building and ambience is second to none - absolutely love going there if regrettably not often enough!!
The roles in this Opera are particularly demanding and it was remarkable how each member could keep up such a high standard. How do they do it? It depends what motivates you in terms of success and reward and what each of these mean to you. They do need enormous stamina and resilience. in my last post and we touched upon diet and exercise. These are the elements we consider seriously to provide us with health and well being to enable us all to pursue an optimum quality of life and longevity. Some of the cast were not in the first flush of youth and yet exuded the energy not dissimilar to the younger members. I wondered what their fitness regime was like and whether they were quite disciplined with diet and lifestyle.
At which stage do people say "my life is over" and that future challenges and achievements are not for them?
On the political scene President Trump is 70 years old, Hillary Clinton 69, Theresa May 60, Jeremy Corbyn 67. Many people at their respective ages have opted for a quieter less demanding life. So what is it that sets them apart keeping themselves active mentally and physically?
A couple of years ago we saw Angela Lansbury in Blithe Spirit in the West End she was then celebrating her 90th birthday!! She was amazing still treading the boards... doing matinee and evening performances.
So the lessons learned for me is that whatever your age its up to each one of us to make our existence as meaningful as possible and not give way to the stereotypes associated with each age group and which compartmentalise us.
Too often older people are written off - its up to us to challenge preconceptions and just get on with it!!
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