It ain't over till the fat lady sings.
Posted by Smokey Stover on November 04, 2004
In Reply to: Hi posted by L on November 04, 2004
: : Whats the origin of the phrase "It aint over till the fat lady sings"
: bluffers' guide to opera.
: the last piece of opera is usually a large female vocalist. opera is apparently so turgid that people try to leave early on the pretext of thinking it is over.
The somewhat Runyonesque dictum, "The opera ain't over till the fat lady sings," is attributed to Anonymous in The Columbia World of Quotations , which compares it to "Don't count your chickens before they're hatched." I think I've heard somewhere, "The fight's not over till the last bell." The saying is not about opera, but about waiting before jumping to a conclusion. But as regards opera: the last piece in an opera is actually only rarely the fat lady singing an aria. There's usually a big scene with lots of people singing and sometimes moving about (a finale), in which the music may get pretty loud. It may seem a little turgid to some, especially if the opera is by Wagner, but that's not really the right word. Busy, confusing, noisy, might be more appropriate. SS
- Posh birds flashing gusset and old boilers letting off steam L 04/November/04
- Opera ESC 04/November/04
- Kiww da wabbit TheFallen 04/November/04
- Kiww da wabbit Brian from Shawnee 05/November/04
- Kiww da wabbit David FG 05/November/04
- Kiww da wabbit Bob 05/November/04
- Kiww da wabbit David FG 05/November/04
- Kiww da wabbit Brian from Shawnee 05/November/04
- Kiww da wabbit TheFallen 04/November/04
- Opera ESC 04/November/04
See also: the meaning and origin of 'It ain't over till the fat lday sings.'.