Opera at Chichén Itzá: Plácido Domingo

Plácido Domingo arrives in the Yucatán Thursday Oct 2, 2008. To his right is the governor of the Yucatán, Yvonne Ortega.

Showtime! The biggest show going on in the Yucatán tonight is a once in a lifetime concert on the site of the ruins of Chichén Itzá. Plácido Domingo is going to realize one of his dreams. I read he visited the area fifty years ago and always wanted to come back and perform here. Tickets sold from 1500 pesos to 10,000 pesos. That would be $150 US up to $1000 US. I plan to see his performance on television for free. The powers that be have agreed to televise it on two local channels because it has been inaccessible to the local folks here since the idea of the concert was conceived. Among the 8,000 lucky attendees will be the president of México Felipe Calderon, probably all the government officials of the entire country, and Brad Pitt, who was spotted in Izamal yesterday. I was under the impression Plácido was going to perform for the surrounding Mayan villagers. Were they allowed to attend the dress rehearsal? Or did the powerful people decide they could watch it on television? I am not sure since it was to be a private free concert only for the local folks, so they are probably keeping a tight lid on that information.

Don Plácido arrived in private plane at the Kaua Airport, a small strip located near the ruins that was used once in the past until this occasion. This week it is full of private jets, 1500 of them if I read the paper right. (That is always a concern of mine.) Ten million pesos were spent on its upgrade for this specific event. A special inauguration was held. The funny thing is that after this one time usage for the concert, the Kaua Airport will again sit idle because there is not one airline interested in adding Chichén Itzá to its route. When I saw the photo in the Diario del Yucatán of Don Plácido in a heavy gray suit, I thought, "Get that man a guayabera shirt and some shorts. He is a real person, isn't he? He knows where he is, doesn't he?" But to my surprise this photo also appeared in the Diario. Yeah! He is human after all!

I wish that was a beer in his hand, but at least he is with the fashion program.

Chichén getting ready for the big event.

Plácido Domingo rehearses with local Symphony of the Yucatán and Monumental Chorus.