There he was, waiting so magnificently and patiently on the edge of the harbour. It was a breakfast date - 10:30AM to be precise. I was so excited that I got there a half hour early, but he didn't seem to mind. We started chatting and he told me about how he was in a contest and was really ahead of his time with his ideas - that when everyone else was a square box, he pushed boundaries and created repetitious curves. He said that engineers didn't think it could be built, but there he stands today. It was fascinating!
He had such depth and contrast. There was a language he spoke - oh the accent - where elements of his story just came together so perfectly. The glass, concrete and steel beams work in harmony to create such a memorable, breath taking experience.
I felt so small in his presence, but also at times comfortable. He made sure that where there was a lot of action going on that we were close, intimate in nature - the smaller theaters don't seat as many as the large Opera theater and musical performance hall.He was very proud of his exterior, but like many men, or buildings, he had a few shy moments. Syd, I'll call him for short, refused to let me capture the magnificent musical performance hall. It was the only theater space where the wood was completely exposed in its natural finish. The wood cascaded from the ceiling down the walls and enveloped the space like a giant wave - reminiscent, I thought, of the ocean rolling into the harbour. He was slightly insecure of my interest in his insides, so I tried to ask more questions about his shell.
The shells on the exterior can be seen from many different angles and he tried to explain how each shell is a sliver of a circle fit one behind the other - or something like that. When he went into details, my eyes kind of glazed over. But, the aesthetic appeal and engineering marvel is there - that's why it's one of the most famously recognized buildings of the 20th century! I did learn that the exposed shell is not concrete, but thousands of tiles, special ordered - talk about having an expensive taste!
As our date drew to a close, I realized he had some flaws. His lounge areas tried to be too opulent with plush solid color upholstery in blue and red. He really just should have used light, unobtrusive finishes that complimented the natural wood and concrete materials. I felt like he was trying to impress me with the expensive looking fabric, but all it really did was make me feel fake - like he was trying too hard. Really, at the end, though we both realized the distance thing was going to be a huge problem, so we decided to leave it at our great morning date and appreciate it for what it was - a fabulous date with the Opera House!
