Die Meistersinger -- on Saturday

Annette Dasch and James Morris.
Credit Tina Fineberg for The New York Times

It seems like the best way to find out if this is the opera for me is to go out and read a couple of reviews. This one by Anthony Tommasini in the New York Tiimes warns the reader that the opera is a long one: six hours. I might just take a few snacks.

A shorter review carries a 2 1/2 minute utube of a chorus which I enjoyed listening to.

My new job is to go out and learn the plot.  Hello google. 

Goggle is where I go to discover a bit of what I will see ahead of time.  If someone asks me a question I always like to appear informed.

There is so much out there that my head began to ache.  I am not going to remember all of that.  I decided to just bite the bullet, make up 10 questions for myself to answer and try to get to the opera with enough knowledge that the 6 hours won't seem that long.  In my reading somewhere it said this was a 4 1/2 hour opera. I am guess that is without adding in the intermission time.

OK.  Ready for the first question.

What does "meistersinger" mean?
Arta