Update on the Met auditions

I almost forgot to tell you how the audition went. It went okay. Multiple people, including my teacher, said it is the best I have ever sung in an opera competition. I felt I sang a solid performance, but I felt I must have looked terrified. I was sure everyone could see my knees shaking. My teacher concurred - I looked like I wanted to be anywhere but on that stage. But it was still my personal best for that environment, so I am glad I did it. That being said, however, I don't see much point in doing it again. Yes, I will be too old for the Met auditions next year, but the DLOG competition uses the same stage, and I think I will forgo that from now on, too. There is nothing more for me to gain from the experience. I am not a competitive singer. After all, a competition is not very different from a studio recital - you come on, you sing your song, and you leave - but I perform quite well in recitals and not so well in competition. Recitals are the reality of performing, so if I had to choose, I would take being better at recitals; competitions are contrived. In competitions, we go to win, but in recitals, we go to entertain, and that is what art is really about: entertainment and the sheer joy of doing it.