Lets talk about standing ovations for a second.

Portland will give a standing ovation to anything, and have therefor lost ALL meaning. I was at this performance, and while it was good and produced with talent, it was NOT ovation worthy. The stage direction was confusing at times and people would do random things for no reason (why were the soldiers digging through the rubble on the right side of the stage? why did the half curtain fall from the ceiling?)

And the whole thing with the captain with the crush on Salome was lacking in almost all emotional impact. This was a good performance and a few people showed a bit of virtuosity, but did it deserve a standing ovation? Nope.

BTW, the reason for the soldiers digging was because they (and Herodias) were searching for the jewels that Herod had just mentioned were hidden in that area (it was not "rubble"). Obviously, you weren't reading the titles. Also, Hogan's performance was over the top and definitely worth a standing ovation.

It deserved the standing ovation, if only for Miss Hogan's performance, and for the best performance I've heard from the Portland Opera Orchestra in years!