Merry day at the opera as organisers seek out first timers We’re sorry, this service is currently unavailable. Please try again later. Dismiss Merry day at the opera as organisers seek out first timers Normal text size The Merry Widow, first-time Opera goer Mel Wasson expected melancholy and grandiosity as befitting an art form born of Renaissance Italy. What she and friend Simone Moncrieff discovered was a sumptuous and glitzy rom-com with the heart and spirit of a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical. First time opera-goers Mel Wasson and Simone Moncrieff were invited to a dress rehearsal of The Merry Widow.