I just saw at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/opera/the-big-question/9922375/An-etiquette-guide-to-ballet-and-opera-for-beginners.html :
3. If you are tempted to join in the chorus of praise remember that opera and ballet lovers like getting their Italian gender endings correct. So: “brava!” for a woman, “bravo!” for man and “bravi!” for everyone....
and I read elsewhere that the feminine plural form is "brave."
A balletcoforum.com search gave several resul
Seeing as we're all speaking English, NOT ITALIAN, I'm in favour of bravo for everyone. I agree with those who find the variations pretentious. Brave? Give me a break!!! Two Pigeons, your story made me laugh out loud.