Neville recounts a trip to the Metropolitan Opera the previous month with his wife and two visiting brothers, one of whom, Lawrence, especially wanted to see Aida. While waiting in a long ticket line, Neville intervened to stop a con man from defrauding the ticket teller of sixteen dollars, and the grateful teller rewarded him with two of the house's reserved VIP seats — center Grand Tier — for a sold-out performance the following Tuesday night.