#HOTSpeaks: New Yorkers Return to HOT Year after Year

David and Mary Elaine Morris have been coming to Hawaii Opera Theatre productions for about five years, even though they live almost 5,000 miles away.

This weekend, the Manhattan residents will attend Puccini’s La Bohème on opening night. The Morrises continue to return, David said, because watching opera is one of Mary Elaine’s favorite things to do while they are in Hawaii.

“We try to time our visits to coincide with HOT’s opera schedule and will fly over for the day from one of the other Hawaiian islands to attend a HOT performance,” David said.

While in Hawaii, David likes to play golf, but Mary Elaine does not. To make up for her being a “golf widow,” David said, he tries to find things to do with her that she enjoys, such as attending HOT operas.

“He takes me to the opera as a treat,” Mary Elaine said. “I’m very fortunate, because I don’t think very many men or spouses who are here for golf find other things for their significant others to enjoy.”

The Morrises, who are also Metropolitan Opera season ticket holders, have seen operas at production companies throughout the United States and internationally, thanks to Mary Elaine’s love of the art form.

Though she has loved fine arts since she was young, Mary Elaine’s appetite for opera began when her father took her to see Verdi’s La Traviata in High School. She later took opera appreciation classes.

“When I walk in Central Park in the mornings, I listen to Renée Fleming’s arias or to the classical station of New York’s public radio station,” Mary Elaine said. “It just reaches and touches my soul. That’s what opera music does.”

The first time the Morrises attended a HOT production, David bought the tickets as a gift for their wedding anniversary. Since then, the couple has seen several HOT productions, including Verdi’s Aida in 2012, Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado in 2014, and Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream earlier this year.

Sometimes the tickets were gifts for special events, like Mary Elaine’s birthday or Valentine’s Day, and sometimes the experience was just for fun.

“The staff has always been very pleasant and extremely helpful every time we go,” Mary Elaine said, “and I like that HOT brings in and utilizes local talent. I feel that’s very important to foster.”

The Morrises are looking forward to seeing La Bohème, they said. Mary Elaine loves the opera and has seen it put on by many production companies, including the Metropolitan Opera and the Paris Opera.

But she is excited to return to HOT once again.

“I just enjoy coming to Hawaii’s opera company,” Mary Elaine Morris said. “I know it’s going to be a great show.”