I had never been to an Opera before, so naturally I assumed it would be similar to how it is portrayed in movies and television. I was in for a shock when the Opera actually began. The first thing that caught me off guard was the number of people on stage, it may sound weird to some but I always imagined a scene in an Opera with only one or two people, no more. Secondly, I was amazed at the power of the performers voice, even though it wasn't as loud as I imagined, there was a point during the performance where I thought about the difficulty of projecting your voice in such a huge hall. Lastly, I was taken aback by the number of men in the performance, it was different than what i expected. I must say my first experience at the Opera was interesting, I found it similar to a musical play but with far superior vocal skills. There were certain parts in the Opera that I enjoyed and others that I didn't. What I did enjoy was the end of the Opera when Alkulka tells about murdering his wife. I thought the performance was amazing, I was so immersed in the story and the way he acted it out amazed me. It seemed so real, for instance he starts banging the bed as he tells the story and at times he seems angry and then sad, it was just a fury of emotions in that scene. I remember at times while he was singing he seemed calm, but then when you read what he was saying it was shocking. 

For me, seeing the House of the Dead Opera was a special experience. It was cool to see an Opera for the first time and debunk all the previous connotations I associated with the art form. I was impressed by the setting and how realistic it seemed(the bed-bunks, the distribution of the meals in the beginning), by the costumes, and especially by the performance from all the performers. I would definitely want to see another Opera one day !