There’s a certain experience that you’re probably familiar with at this point in the pandemic: You log into a Zoom meeting and are greeted by your own horrendous face. You needed a haircut a month ago, and it shows. The cruel, uncontrollable lighting does you no favors. Beauty is lost in virtual reality. Be that as it may, you are happy to see some other faces after weeks of seclusion either with yourself as your sole company or (even worse?) with a troupe of raucous family members.
This is the mood with which Fort Worth Opera’s
Bernadette’s Cozy Book Nook (with a libretto by Mark Campbell, and music by Joe Illick) opens, and it captures the all-too familiar atmosphere perfectly as the titular character (Brenda Harris) starts a Zoom meeting and quickly reckons with the struggles of technology. She is hosting her book club’s first meeting since the beginning of the pandemic, and is eager to have a successful virtual meeting. Bernadette is concerned by how uncomely her ne