My mother had expressed interest in seeing the musical Queen of the Gypsies in Lahti City Theatre. Last Friday I checked the availability of tickets, realized I had better act quickly, and bought tickets for Saturday next week, as I believed. Having paid it dawned on me that the day was 'tomorrow'...

There was no alternative but to go, never mind mother's aching back, my unsuitable clothes, and previous plans... Well, on Saturday the back was better, I had an old bright red jacket suit with padded shoulders to wear, and there frozen pizzas for dinner.

The play was a pleasant surprise, as the review in the local paper had been less than effervescent. I was especially impressed with the singing of the actors which compared very favourably with that of the Finnish pop singers. The dancers, mostly students of Lahti University of Applied Sciences, were colourful, although a bit stiff. Actors were as actors are - I don't care for the elocution, nor ampifiers.

From the point of view ideas, I don't quite understand this kind of romanticism. Or maybe I should read the story as a criticism of juvenile posing? Upholding one's self image leads to ruin... And the captain in an SS uniform... I'm afraid someone felt very satisfied having thought of it...

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In addition to the jacket suit I had old shoes with inch high wedge heels. Waiting for the play to start I noticed that the soles were crumbling. By the time we got home, the heels were no more.