Independence

On this 232nd birthday of our great country, I want to congratulate our own Italian expert (and loyal reader of this blog) on her new U.S. citizenship. We hope you're enjoying your first Independence Day as an official American, FG!

On a more trivial note, I celebrated the 4th by declaring 24 hours of independence from my fellow humans. My family is out of town, and I've turned down a truly tempting party invitation because I've hit my first big "vant to be alone" wall of the summer. History proves that if I give in temporarily, I'll be calm and productive when everything hits the fan in the next couple of days. A 5-mile walk, an hour of yoga, some trashy piano-playing, and a good book later, I'm ready to take on the world. Or at least some opera. (Lest you think me virtuous, the day also included a hefty dose of YouTubing and a whole bag of Milano's.)

Great full-page piece in today's Post weekend section on our celebrity guest artist for Candide. Costanza Talks 'Candide'-ly: Jason Alexander Plays an Eternal Optimist in an Adaptation of Voltaire's Satire

Many more details in tomorrow's posts about prep for Sunday's performance at the Filene Center. If you're coming to the show (and I certainly hope you are... I'm more than a little excited about it and I have to work it... ) don't miss the pre-show chat with yours truly and our assistant conductor Evan Rogister. On the Old Farmhouse Lawn (just take the path to the left of the box office circle) at 7:15.