Night at the Opera

Last Thursday, Satchel's class was invited to a dress rehearsal of Madame Butterfly at the Orpheum. They got a study guide from Opera Memphis and talked about the storyline in class. (Since Jiro will be in the elementary next year, he was invited to come along. He was SO excited.)

To make the outing more of an event, everyone got together for a pre-opera dinner at the Majestic Grille down the street. Deni Reilly, one of the owners, was nice enough to give us our own little area and Patrick Reilly, the other owner and chef, put together at special kids' menu for us. How awesome is that? (It definitely helped me steer Satchel away from the $26 ribeye he wanted to order!)

Surprisingly everyone was very well-behaved at dinner. I worried they might be too excited to be eating with their friends to actually eat or sit still, but everyone snarfed down their flatbreads and their pasta like there was no tomorrow. Jiro and Satchel sat at a different table from Warren and I, and I loved spying on them. My sweet little Jiro ate his entire flatbread with a fork! And everyone was absolutely amazed by the girth of the onion rings!

Our servers were extra attentive and very patient with us, which made the whole dining experience relaxed and fun. Deni and Chef Patrick even came out to visit, which was a real treat for the kids.


The opera itself was really long. Like three hours long! BUT amazingly enough, the kids did not get antsy at all. (Except for the non-reader sitting next to me.) The elementary kids all seemed completely mesmerized. And of course they (well, maybe just Satchel and Jiro) loved the tragic ending. (Not to give things away, but it involves blood.)

The real tragedy of the night was that no one took a picture of Team Oster. We were all color coordinated in our greys, blacks, and whites!

Thanks so much to the Majestic and Opera Memphis for such a wonderful evening!