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| The cast of "Three Waiters," who performed at the GAVAR installation of Dan Venturoli on Friday, Jan.14. Photo courtesy of Liz Breault |
No sooner had we sat down at the Greater Antelope Valley Association of Realtors installation dinner on Friday, than people started dropping hints about the evening's entertainment. "You, especially, will love it," one said. Another said "You will absolutely love this."
Okay, then, I said, it must be something to do with opera. They were shocked, and afraid that they had spilled the beans. Give me a break! Everyone knows I love opera, the lobby was decorated in an Italian theme, there were breadsticks and bottles of Chianti in fiascos (straw-wrapped baskets) serving as part of the decor, and the honoree's last name ends in a vowel.
What else could it be? Of course, I happened to know that Dan Venturoli, the incoming GAVAR president is a big opera and classical music fan, so that helped me guess.
Dan played the piano at my wedding, and along with my friend Barbara Letson, did a magnificent job on the flowers and decorations for the wedding venue, making the evening unforgettable. The decor of the Hellenic Center Friday night was equally fabulous, and made the huge room seem intimate.
Dan called the theme of the evening "Italiano Famiglia Celebrazione," and it was like a family dinner. The food was served family style, and diners had to pass around plates of chicken and pasta. The twisted breadsticks tasted even better than they looked in the vases.
At one point, the "catering manager" came to the microphone and announced that the staff had found a silver handbag in the restroom, and would the owner come claim it. After few beats, he added that it was found in the men's room. Of course, I started thinking salacious thoughts, like "what was this woman doing in the men's bathroom?"
About five minutes later, "Alfredo" comes back to the mic and says the owner was found, and says, "He was very happy to have it back," with a twinkle in his eye.
By now, people are catching on that perhaps he isn't the real catering manager. I happen to know who the real catering manager is, so I wasn't fooled. Eventually, he breaks out in a Italian opera song from Verdi, that I can't remember the name of. Then, from the middle of the room, a "waiter"named Jean-Marc speaks up and denigrates Italian opera, saying that the French know the real meaning of love, and therefore, of opera. He sings Frenchman Georges Bizet's "Toreador Song," from Carmen.
They argue for a while, and sing something else. I'd like to be more specific about the repertoire, but I was half-way through my second scandalously expensive Bombay Sapphire martini. (If you go to an event at the Hellenic Center, bring lots of cash).
Then from the back of the room, a curly-haired American waiter breaks out into "Tonight," from West Side Story. I don't know that I would put Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim up against Bizet and Puccini, but it is American, and recognizable. He says his name is Brian.
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| "Brian" serenading a GAVAR attendee. I know what you're thinking, but she was not a member of the cast. Photo courtesy of Liz Breault. |
At some point, they all sang "Nessun Dorma,"from Puccini's Turandot, possibly the most well-known of all opera songs, and the signature song of Luciano Pavoratti. That was fitting, since it turns out that the three "servers" are actually The Three Waiters, a send-up of The Three Tenors, of which the late Pavoratti was a member, along with Jose Carreras and L.A. Opera director Placido Domingo.
You can see the Three Tenors doing "Nessun Dorma" here.
The Three Waiters is a franchise operation, with singers all over the world, who adapt the show to whatever culture and language they perform in. At one point, according to the website, they actually got to sing for Carrera, Domingo, and Pavarotti. (I can imagine the stagefright before that gig. I'd be throwing up. I'm nervous enough cooking for my friend Maria-Elena, a restauranteur.)
The show closed appropriately enough, with "O Sole Mio," and before it was all over, everyone was waving their napkins in the air like they were doing a folk dance.
It was a hard act to follow, but before long, Lou Bozigian took the stage to the tune of The Godfather theme. What's that you say? That the realtor is Armenian, and a helluva nice guy, and highly unlikely to send anyone to "sleep with the fishes"? It was funny anyway, especially when he broke out his Marlon Brando imitation.
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| Lou Bozigian swearing in Dan Venturoli, the new president of GAVAR. (Or is he swearing allegiance to The Family... we're not sure.) Photo courtesy of Liz Breault. |
Dan gave a speech with exactly the right tone for these trying times in real estate: just the right mix of humor, optimism and pragmatism. He dubbed 2011 the era of "Making the most of what we've got," and I think that's really true. Let's not pine for how well we used to have it, but appreciate what we've got left.
It was a fantastic night, and we were proud of our boy Daniel. He said years ago he wanted to be president of GAVAR by the time he was 30, and he has. His birthday is coming up soon, so he just made it under the wire. Good luck, Dan and thanks for the fun evening.
