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The Color of Opera by Sanaa Abourezk
Red is the color of passion, of powerful emotions that affect us all in our daily lives. It is a color that stands out, that doesn’t hide, that boldly announces itself. Nowhere is the power and drama of red clearer than in Italian opera, where the color explains all of the lofty feelings present in almost every libretto. Opera stories are never told without adding love, innocence, war and death. Innocence is displayed by the blush of the first kiss. A red heart is emblematic of love. Revolutionary wars are led by red-colored flags, the symbols of revolution. And operatic death makes scarlet blood flow on the stage. Red was the color used by the artists of ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptians, who employed it to emphasize chapter headings on the writings found on their papyrus, as well as to color the three thousand year old royal robes discovered in the tombs of the kings. Henna was used by the Pharaohs to stain fingers and toes to improve their awareness of the earth’s energies. When Julius Caesar sought to distinguish himself as first among equals in the Roman Senate, he wore a red toga, angering the other, white-clad Senators. The power of his red toga was part of the cause of his death at their hands.
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