A quintessential NYC activity.

Watching a show at The Metropolitan Opera, tucked inside Lincoln Center, is an iconic New York City activity and the perfect way to round off a summer evening in the city. The building itself is gorgeous with high ceilings featuring ornate glass chandeliers and a winding staircase making it seem like a fancy affair. Truthfully, while going to an opera sounds like a dressy activity there is no strict dress code and people wore anything from evening dresses and suits to jeans and more casual attire.

An opera can be intimidating because it is most likely going to be in a foreign language, like Puccini’s Madama Butterfly which is what we watched, the Met Opera actually has subtitles allowing for an experience where their voices are not only enjoyable but also understandable. With subtitles allowing a person to choose from a range of languages, they matched the actors voices as the show went on and made it a comfortable experience with a story that was easy to follow.

A surprising aspect is that the Opera is much more accessible than other iconic NYC activities like watching a show on Broadway. With rush tickets going for reasonable rates it allows everyone to have an experience without the price tag which usually comes along.

Ultimately, visiting the opera is an immersion into art and entertainment and is just one of those quintessential things to do at least once whilst in the city!