Anticipation for Saturday night's premiere of Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour La Traviata is at fever pitch in Sydney, the city decked out in festive posters and flags and that huge crane visible as you cross the Harbour Bridge.
Opera Australia invited media to a special dress rehearsal preview but there was also an unwelcome guest: a light drizzly rain that seemed to fall only when it was not wanted. Commencement was delayed but eventually the company adhered to the old saying "the show must go on". A slightly abridged version presented, with only act two scene one (surely the least spectacular segment) omitted.
