Back Stage...

As the biggest Drama Queen I know, and a ballet fiend at that, I thought R would appreciate a "behind the scenes" tour of the beautiful Royal Theatre in Copenhagen at some point, so we went when she had a day off school a couple of days ago. With theatres also suffering in the current financial climate, this theatre also has the added pressure of helping to stump up the stupendous running costs of its baby sister The Copenhagen Opera House, so it was nice to be supportive in a slightly different way, and gain an insight into life backstage at the same time! First we learned about some of the ancient laws of the stage, many of which are based on bizarre superstitions, but are taken very seriously! One I hadn't heard before is that it's bad luck to whistle in a theatre! Many stage hands were also sailors in days gone by, and they communicated scene and set shifts by whistling to each other, so if an actor whistled on stage as part of an act, this could have spelt disaster! Standing on stage looking out at the hundreds of empty red velvet seats (which would probably be my nightly view if I were performing on it!), it felt bizarre and slightly eerie to be honest and theatres are now up there alongside schools on my list of buildings I find creepy when not in general use! We then paid a visit to the Royal Box, where R got further ideas above her station by reclining in the Queens's chair!... The highlight for me was the costume department though, hundreds of beautiful tutus hung like designer lamps from the ceiling in preparation for the ballet, and we saw the most ornate dresses being sewn (and fur being stuck on the strangest monkey suit I have ever seen!) by people whose jobs I am incredibly jealous of! No pictures allowed where people are working unfortunately, so you will just have to visit yourselves if you are here and have an hour or two to spare... Make sure you ask for the lovely and informative Lars to show you around!