Placido Domingo To Perform Oct. 4, 2008 at Mexico’s Chichen Itza
Tickets Available Now
By Marita Adair
Luciano Pavarotti appeared there in 1997. So will Placido Domingo, Saturday, October 4, 2008. “The Concert of the Thousand Columns, Placido Domingo at Chichén Itzá, will feature the world-renowned operatic tenor using the same memorable backdrop as for Pavarotti: the “Temple of the Warriors” flanked by “ Group of a Thousand Columns” and opposite the ancient “Temple of Kukulkan” or “ El Castillo,” as it’s also known. Seating, under the stars, will be limited to around 5,000.
Joining Domingo will be the Yucatán Symphony Orchestra, Yucatecan composer Armando Manzanero, Puerto Rican soprano Ana María Martínez, and American director Eugene Kohn. Domingo made his debut at 16 in nearby Merida; his family settled in Mexico from Spain when he was 8. He will perform “Adoro created by Manzanero, classic opera, Mexican favorites, and Zarzuela.
The performance celebrates the 1500-year-old Maya site’s recent designation as one of the Seven Wonders of the World and 20 years as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Proceeds benefit preservation of Chichen Itza. Tickets are available now through www.Ticketmaster.com.mx (Search word: Placido Domingo). Prices are in Mexican pesos. For a rough estimate of the price in dollars, the conversion below uses 10 pesos to the dollar. Tickets must be purchased in advance through Ticketmaster and will not be available at the site or through hotels or travel agencies.
Three different levels of tickets are offered: Platinum VIP, Gold VIP, and General.
Platinum VIP costs 10,000 MXN pesos (U.S. $1000) and includes a welcome cocktail and dinner after the concert.
Gold tickets cost 7,500 MXN pesos (U.S.$750) and includes a welcome cocktail
General tickets are in four different zones:
Green zone 5,000 MXN pesos (U.S.$500)
Yellow zone 3,500 MXN pesos (U.S. $350)
Purple zone 1,500 MXN pesos (U.S. $150)
Orange zone 500 MXN pesos (U.S. $50)
The concert begins at 8.30 p.m. and ends around 11 p.m.Check with better hotels and travel agencies in Merida, Valladolid and Piste about transportation. The city of Merida is 75 miles southeast of the Chichen Itza archeological site on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. The Chichen Itza archeological site lies just outside the small town of Piste, where there are also hotels. Valladolid, 25 miles east of Piste/Chichen Itza, is another option for lodging.