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Fidelio

 Fidelio, Beethoven's only opera, as it returns to the COC after nearly 15 years.  This new production, helmed by acclaimed director Matthew Ozawa, presents a bold and visually stunning interpretation. With revolving steel cages, industrial lights, and television screens, the opera captures both the musical brilliance and the arresting visual impact of Beethoven's triumphant hymn to justice and freedom. Before you attend the opera, here are 10 essential facts about Fidelio: Beethoven's Tumultuous Journey: Beethoven faced immense challenges while writing and producing Fidelio, often finding the process torturous. Despite the hardships, he later expressed that this work brought him great sorrow and held a special place in his heart. A Tale of Hope and Heroism: The story revolves around Leonore, who assumes the identity of Fidelio, a male guard, to infiltrate the prison where she believes her husband is a political prisoner. She uncovers a world of abuse, oppression, and a plo
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Poems Images and Books about Economic Decline

Book Reviews What We Have Lost:  The Dismantling of Great Britain  by  James Hamilton-Paterson . Head of Zeus, 360 pp., £25, October 2018,  978 1 78497 235 6 The Rise and Fall of the British Nation:  A 20 th -Century History  by  David Edgerton . Allen Lane, 681 pp., £30, June 2018,  978 1 84614 775 3 I have always been interested in decline and business failure, and recovery. Here are the main points in these two books: Leadership: Edgerton argues that most decolonized theories are garbage, often used as a critique for the left and a refuge for extraordinary and ineffective measures. Hamilton-Paterson blamed policy errors and collective inadequacy for British development issues in the 20th century.  Decline and Rebellions: Britain in the 1970s was still alive and changing. Significant rebellions were breaking the surface.  The absolute deterioration is when change dries up.  Both books agree that this was a window of opportunity. Manufacturing Decline: British industry needed to compe
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Russian Arms Exports

I dislike writing about arms exports because the people involved in this activity --- well, I dislike them. Creating financial models in the arms sector has paid many of my bills. You can never really diverse arms exports from countries' more excellent grand strategies. And in this case, this is what the United States is doing. Russian arms exports have fallen two levels not seen since the collapse of the Soviet Union, down nearly 70 percent since 2011 and with deliveries to just 12 countries. India and China developing their own arms industries, and Venezuela's economic downturn and lower oil prices caused this.   Russia's arms exports have declined to levels not seen since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The decline began in 2019, well before the war in Ukraine, and was already down nearly 20% relative to 2011, the high-water mark for the Russian arms industry. The decline in arms sales points to further erosion of Russia's international influence and increasing dep
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