Win Free Tickets to Nabucco at the Minnesota Opera (plus a 20% discount!)

FREE TICKETS NO LONGER AVAILABLE, BUT SEE THE DISCOUNT…

A Night At the Opera

‘Nabucco’ 2012. (c) Scott Suchman for Washington National Opera

OPERA! Raise your hand if you’ve ever seen the opera? And I don’t mean the Looney Tunes Version. Opera has a long and storied tradition. Beginning over 400 years ago in Italy, it’s given rise to some of music’s most famous composers: like Mozart, Wagner (raging Anti-Semite, but you can’t knock “Ride of the Valkyries”), and The Who. And now TC Jewfolk is giving away two FREE tickets to see the first show of the Minnesota Opera’s 50th season: Nabucco.

Nabucco, not Nabisco

‘Nabucco’ 2012. (c) Scott Suchman for Washington National Opera

Written by Italian master Giuseppe Verdi, Nabucco tells the story of Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar:

“Verdi’s monumental opera follows the plight of the Jews as they are conquered and exiled from their homeland by King Nebuchadnezzar (Nabucco). With its soaring choruses, triumphant arias and bold drama, Nabucco won Verdi’s reputation as an operatic icon and national hero.”

It’s an opera in four acts, none of which, as far as I can tell, include Nabisco cookies. (Funny story: my grandma once offered me a box of Nabisco cookies that had been sitting in her pantry since the 1970s. That has nothing to do with opera; I just thought you might enjoy that anecdote.) King Nebuchadnezzar, despite being the namesake of Morpheus’s rollicking ship in The Matrix, was anything but rollicking to the Jews. Unless by rollicking you mean tyrannical and crazy, then yes, he was totally rollicking. He kicked the Jews out of Babylon, destroyed Solomon’s temple, and wouldn’t even let any of them stay up late to watch “The Daily Show.” Nabucco takes the real Nebuchadnezzar and throws him in with a bunch of fictional characters for what some say is Verdi’s greatest and most personal work.

Why See This Show?

‘Nabucco’ 2012. (c) Scott Suchman for Washington National Opera

Oh, so many reasons. One, because you’ll finally be able to tell people you’ve been to the opera. Two, it’s the Minnesota Opera’s 50th season, and you know they’re pulling out all the stops for their first show of the season. I’m talking gaudy costumes, lavish sets, glass-shattering voices—you’ll see (and hear) it all. The show itself even has knife fighting, double-crossings, poison! And Jewish history! If you often tell people, “I don’t really like history, but I do like it when people sing,” then you NEED to see this show. It’s Verdi’s most acclaimed opera, with his most acclaimed song, “The Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves.” And the show has a real-life Hebrew (non-slave) in that chorus: Josh Kowitz, who is the son of Temple of Aaron cantor Mitch Kowitz. How cool is that?!

OK, I’m convinced. How can I get tickets?

Easy. TC Jewfolk is giving them away! We have two FREE tickets to give away, redeemable for 1 of 3 (of the 5) performances, you pick: Thursday, Sept 27 (7:30pm); Saturday, Sept 29 (7:30pm) and Sunday Sept 30 (2pm) (tickets based on availability). To win just answer the following question in the comments below by 6pm on Thursday, September 20th:

What is your favorite opera song?

There’s no correct answer. The winner will be drawn at random.

What’s this 20% off Discount opportunity?

For those of you who don’t want to wait until Thursday to find out if you can go see Nabucco, TC Jewfolk is offering an awesome 20% discount to those same three shows – Thursday, Sept 27 (7:30pm); Saturday, Sept 29 (7:30pm) and Sunday Sept 30 (2pm). Limit up to 2 seats regularly priced $50-$120. To score tickets at the discounted price, go online: Enter tcj20 and click “Add Coupon”. You will see your savings applied. Do not complete order if coupon does not load. Service charges and other restrictions may apply. Offer ends September 30, 2012. For additional information call the Ticket Office at 612-333-6669, M-F, 9am-6pm.
Visit the Minnesota Opera’s website for show times and tickets.

Learn more about Nabucco and the Minnesota Opera: