Monday night at the MET.

Opening night of Andrea Chenier. An understudy observes intermission.

As a child, going to performances at NYCO with my grandmother, I found the Lincoln Center complex cold and hulking. As an appreciation for mid-century design gradually, over a period of years, slipped into my consciousness, I found new things to admire, and yes, even enjoy. The interior of the MET for one. The white marble staircases that coil and snake with both boldness and elegance.  The gilt fish-scale ceiling. The intricately spiky Sputnik chandeliers that rise grandly to announce the start of each performance. The geometry of it all is really quite breathtaking.