If you can sell green toothpaste in this country, you can sell opera.

If you can sell green toothpaste in this country, you can sell opera.

Going to the opera, like getting drunk, is a sin that carries its own punishment with it.

Going to the opera, like getting drunk, is a sin that carries its own punishment with it.

Any subject is good for opera if the composer feels it so intently he must sing it out.

Any subject is good for opera if the composer feels it so intently he must sing it out.

I'd like to see a nude opera, because when they hit those high notes, I bet you can really see read more

I'd like to see a nude opera, because when they hit those high notes, I bet you can really see it in those genitals

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings.

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings.

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings

I seem to write an opera about every 20 years; if you live long enough you can write four operas. read more

I seem to write an opera about every 20 years; if you live long enough you can write four operas. I finished my third in 1970.

An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. It starts in read more

An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. It starts in my imagination, it becomes my life, and it stays part of my life long after I've left the opera house.

But to me the actual sound of the words is all important; I feel always that the words complete the read more

But to me the actual sound of the words is all important; I feel always that the words complete the music and must never be swallowed up in it.