Poetry from the ladyshed: A Masked Ball in Venice

Un Ballo In Maschera ( A Venetian Masked Ball) a Sonnet

Fingers of mist poke smoke up dark canals,

Lamp pools of light casts shadows all around.

Tall, shady shapes slink out from bacchanals.

Cloaked folk walk slowly past, without a sound.

Gondolas slide by, murky water laps;

Masked lovers touch, kiss in the bright moonlight.

Casanovas woo, laying lady traps,

dancing, drinking, making love this night.

Around cloistered courtyards, masked figures wait,

In marbled rooms, veiled Courtesans make fun.

Lute music wafts from the Doges estate,

The Venice Carnivale has now begun.

Guilty gente decide what their fate will be.

Hoping all their sins will wash out to sea.

1 An Opera in 3 parts by Verdi.

2 The Doges(pronounced dozh is the equivalent of a Duke or Ducca

[3] gente f (plural genti) – people