Browsing through your gallery, and this piece just kept catching my eye. I'm a big fan of colour, so that's probably what primarily caught my attention; but it's not just the striking use of the colour that attracts me to this.
Firstly, I think, there are so many stories in this one image, so many questions - why is the left eye covered up - to me, it suggests she has been punched, and she's covering a broken wound and the horrific bruising that comes with such a violent act. Then of course, I take that and look at the razor, and the logic is that she is hurting because the person who punched her is someone she thinks she loves, or she thinks she can't get away from. But maybe I see this because I have known a friend in that situation.
The big green eye also catches (my eye?) my attention, I think because it seems to mirror so much sadness, and have so much depth, without being a generic big eye (as in, normal manga or anime eyes). It's a heart wrenching look she is giving the viewer. Possibly the wquestion is 'why didn't you see? Why didn't you help?' or even, 'you do understand, don't you?'. Also, with the eye, I love the darkened patch that falls downward from it, reaching out - like tears, but not generically so.
I mentioned Manga before, and this is another aspect of Opera that grabs me - I don't consider this to be Manga, but it has the best bits that I like out of Manga used in a very sensitive way (the big eye, the delicate nose, the lips) - and that is far more effective than the average Manga piece.
The blood, someone else mentioned it looked like rose petals - to me, it looks like wilted petals (I'm specifically thinking petunia petals, if you want to know.) and that interests me too - almost as if, by letting the blood out, it is no longer alive. Like her will has wilted.
The linework is so simple to contain so much! And I adore how the work is so loose with colour - compositionally, it keeps the eye involved constantly. It's hard to draw away from this image.
Looking at the college aspect of it, I'm fascinated to know where the blood came in - on the gauze, I think? And did you use a little tissue paper for the petals - or was that lovely texture just built up with paint? I love to see a collage where the extra materials are added so sympathetically.
Lastly, I just want to consider the title. It makes me wonder, is this a story? Opera is so over-dramatic, melodramatic, even. And the action being made in the image is actually very melodramatic - here the person is, fixing you with one good eye, drawing a razor up their chin. Maybe the title has nothing to do with this, but that is how I percieve it.

Stunning, stunning work.

Katie, your pictures are always a treat to look at, but this one is especially amazing. The various techniques and media that have gone into this work of art, and the way they collide and mix is amazing. The detail on the eye and the makeup around it is superb, with the beautiful blending of colors. The way you overlaid Keith's picture on top of yours only adds to the "colorfully depressed" vibe I get from this picture. It makes it look like the picture was smeared down, or water was spilled.

The entire piece has, as I mentioned like 3 lines above, a "colorfully depressing" vibe mixed with a lot of emotionally charged symbolism.

Overall, this is an amazing picture that, if I had the money, I would buy and hang on my wall right away. You're an artistic genius, Katie, you really are.