EUROPE ON THE AISLE

Chicago Tribune columnist Claudia Cassidy treats us to the European version of her feature, On the Aisle, in a ripping tour of festival towns on the Continent. The central interest is in the formal presentation of the stage and concert arts-theatre, opera, dance -- which extends to the bullfighting arena, the shrine of the Dark Virgin at Monteserrat, the stage setting beauty of Venice. Charpentier and Louise in Paris, Fidelio in Vienna, Casals at Prades, Don Carlos at Milan have for the author a special significance which she shares -- the relation of place to performance is pertinent. There are other showplaces -- those which history inhabits such as Versailles and Fontainebleau, Florence and Rome. The stage of London, the festivity of Edinburgh, the Mozart of Salzburg, the opera of Madrid merge with darting, evocative descriptions of towns such as San Sebastien, Trieste, Cannes, and of great artists -- Jose Limon, Rossi-Lemeni as Boris, Pablo Casals, and many others. A romp for the somewhat serious and informed music and drama audience veteran.