Matt spent the rest of the week trying to avoid Mrs. Menendez.
Normally he looked forward to music class, but now he was glad he only had it once a week.
He didn't want his friends to hear her praising his voice and pressuring him to join chorus.
She really was his favorite teacher, and he hated saying no to her, and he did like to sing, but . . . He liked to sing by himself, not with a group of kids, and certainly not where Tyler and Brian could hear him.
All of a sudden, Mrs. Menendez seemed to be everywhere Matt was:
in the school library, the cafeteria, and especially the hallways.
But somehow Matt managed to stay out of her way—even when he panicked on Wednesday and came within an inch of walking into the girls' bathroom by mistake.
By the time Friday came, he was exhausted from dodging her.
So he was happy when his mother announced at breakfast on Saturday that she had a nice surprise for him.
"Instead of listening to an opera on the radio today, how would you like to actually see one?"
"Great!" Matt said. "Do you mean the opera in Philadelphia? Or—" He paused because the other possibility was so exciting, he could barely say the words.
"Or are we going to the Metropolitan Opera in New York City?"
"No, we're not going to the Met." Mrs. Whitman laughed.
"That's way too expensive, and besides we couldn't get there in time. We're going to see an opera at a movie theater."
"Oh." Matt made a face as he scooped up another spoonful of cereal.
"Now don't be disappointed." Matt's mom explained that the movie theater was showing a series of operas broadcast live from famous opera houses.
"Today's opera is The Barber of Seville, and it'll be just like seeing the live production. The Barber of Seville
You might even like it more because you'll have a better view of the stage."
"Oh! That would be great!" Matt said enthusiastically. "Which movie theater are we going to?"
"The one near the mall."
"Oh, no! We definitely can't go there. What if we run into someone I know?"
"How is that a problem?" Mrs. Whitman looked puzzled. "If we see friends of yours, that just means they like opera too.
In fact, would you like to invite Tyler to come along? He seemed curious about Don Carlo last week. Don Carlo
I could try to get another ticket online."
"No! No! No! That wouldn't be good at all."
Mrs. Whitman crossed her arms and gave an annoyed sigh. "I thought you'd like to do this, but if you don't want to go—"
"You don't understand, Mom. Zombie Invasion 4 is opening this weekend, and everyone will be going to see it." Zombie Invasion 4
"Do you really think your friends would go without you? You won't run into them."
Matt had to admit it was highly unlikely that Brian and Tyler would see the movie without him, but that still didn't solve his problem.
"That movie theater has a dozen screens! The odds we'll run into somebody I know in the lobby or parking lot are huge!"
"And if we do—"
"You just don't get it!" Matt slammed his spoon so hard, milk splashed out of his bowl. He stormed out of the kitchen.
Up in his room, he turned on his computer.
He'd seen clips of operas online before, but he'd never watched an entire production.
The trouble was that he did want to see this opera; he just didn't want to see it at that theater.
Maybe it was playing somewhere else. He went online and quickly found The Barber of Seville and where it was showing. The Barber of Seville
Now all he had to do was persuade his mother to go to one of those other theaters.
He came back downstairs, where she had just finished breakfast.
"I know you don't like driving on highways, and there's no other way to get to that theater," he began.
"But what if we went to the movies in Doylestown? You always say you like the drive up there."
"That's almost an hour away!" Mrs. Whitman said. "Besides, I already bought tickets to this theater."
Matt and his mom stood in the kitchen, staring at each other. He didn't know what else to say, but she did.
"Be ready to go at 11 o'clock or I'm leaving without you. I've heard these shows are crowded, so we need to get there early to find good seats."
Matt went back to his room. There had to be some way that he could go to the opera without anyone seeing him.
But he had no idea how to do that.
With a sigh, he went back online and browsed his favorite websites.
He was looking at some photos from famous operas when he had an idea.
"I'll go in disguise!" he thought. "People do that all the time in operas."
He remembered how a character in The Magic Flute, a beautiful young girl, disguised herself as an old woman. The Magic Flute
Suddenly he realized how easy it would be to disguise himself as an old man.
Matt's grandfather had lived with them until he died. "I think we still have some of his old clothes in the spare bedroom," Matt thought.
He went off to explore the bureau and closet. He was so busy digging around that he almost didn't hear his mother.
"Matt!" she called from downstairs. "It's after 11 o'clock! Are you coming or not?"
"Coming!" he shouted.
A few minutes later, he ran downstairs wearing his grandfather's hat with a scarf wrapped around the lower part of his face.
He was also wearing his own sunglasses and carrying his grandfather's cane.
"A disguise?" Matt's mom just shook her head.
"I guess you were serious about not wanting anyone to see you at the opera."
At the theater Mrs. Whitman stopped to buy some snacks at the counter in the lobby.
Matt looked around nervously. "Do you have to do that?" he asked.
"You'll want something to eat later on," she said. "This opera lasts two and a half hours, and that doesn't include intermission."
By the time they walked into the theater where the opera was showing, it was full.
The only seats left were in the front row, but Matt didn't mind one bit!
As the overture started, he removed his sunglasses and settled back in his seat, ready to enjoy the show.