4th Birthday Ticket Contest Winners

The ninth hour has struck, the contest is over, and we have two winners! The first winner was already announced on Monday morning and has the following answer to the question "Who is your favorite opera heroine? Why?":

Iphigenie, of course. As a child the story of Abraham’s willingness to kill his son consumed me. When I discovered the story of Iphigenie, her heartsicknesses at sacrificing the man who is her brother resonated with me as the more magical, fantastical version of the Abrahmic myth of obedience.

The final winner, with the best comment, is another anonymous commenter (actually neither are anonymous to me, as they disclosed their names to me in the entry email) with the following choice:

I choose Magda Sorel from Gian Carlo Menotti's The Consul. She is my favourite opera heroine not only because she is a strong, sympathetic character whose perseverance and devotion is breathtaking (and who is all the more real and sympathetic for her tragic end), but because she is fighting not only for herself, not only for her husband, but also for her baby - and for the freedom of the people who share her life in their state of political oppression.

Menotti's writing vividly highlights the drama of the situation and the characters' emotions. I absolutely cannot listen to a recording of the opera without crying at the end.

Thanks to everyone for competing I hope both winners enjoy their free tickets to Opera Atelier's upcoming production of Iphigénie en Tauride. I would also like to thank Opera Atelier for making these tickets available to readers of the Collaborative Piano Blog.