I think opera has gained a kind of glamorous appeal. It’s a live performance that aligns all of the arts, and when it is represented in the media, in film in particular, it is presented as something that is really a special event, whether it’s a great date or something that’s just hugely romantic.

Fleming frames opera’s modern allure less as an elite museum piece than as a culturally coded “event.” She points to opera’s synthesis of multiple art forms—music, drama, visual design, movement—arguing that its liveness intensifies that fusion into a singular, communal experience. She also notes how film and other media have helped shape opera’s public image: when opera appears on screen, it is often used as shorthand for heightened emotion, romance, and occasion. The quote therefore highlights a feedback loop between the stage and popular culture, where mediated representations amplify opera’s glamour and, in turn, influence why audiences seek it out.