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The Opera by You -team is looking for your ideas and comments. Join and show your support for Opera by You. An other bank story by Timo AiristoSign of times that so many seem to be suggesting bank themed story lines... I would like to see a greed and subsequent fall story with a strong sarcastic tone - the whole story poking serious fun at the modern day folly that we call the international financial system. Some characters should be almost like caricatures, comments and logic like out of Dilbert, even some power point presentations included. The setting could be a fat cat bankers annual party at his humble private residence (The Olavi Castle) and the opera audience his quests. Would be nice to see an interactive element (with the audience) in the performance as there is one in the creation of the opera. I leave the details to the real writers :) |
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Good thinking! What do other writers think? Love story or a social commentary or both?
It's true that moving the audience in Olavinlinna is probably too challenging. As I have a theater background I like the idea of the audience playing some sort of part in the plot.
Iida
i'm prepared to start writing the love tragedy arc (with the surprising love triumph at the end).
unfortunately, i don't have finnish or gaelic at beck & call.
:(
i wonder if the alien character of the 'rich american' coming to an exotic castle would be ripe for lacing vulgar english in a more, er, site specific language?
such that the opera transforms the character from vulgar to heroic...
To all fellow "Banker" enthusiasts: It seems like there are three common themes running through (almost) all of the suggestions: (i) we are in a critical moment of the bankers life; (ii) his has a dark past; and (iii) that the venue (Olavinlinna) and the audience should play a role.
Here is what I think about these elements:
(i) Critical moment: It has to be. Opera is of great emotinons and those you can only find at pivotal moments of our lives.
(ii) Dark past: A secrect that though the different acts (i.e. parts of the opera) bubbles to the surface, is what should bring the banker to the critical moment and great emotions. I prefer the idea of greed leading to fall from grace and decend into financial ruin over an (unfulfilled) love story, simply cause I would like the story make a social comment as well.
But maybe we could combine these somehow? Maybe the reason the people have gathered to Olavinlinna is to celebrate the banker's wedding (like Jack suggested) that a greed led secret is threathning to destroy? I would like to see the story to develop to the "repent, redeem, love triumps" direction if we simply skip the social commentery, but maybe thats too corny?
(iii) Olavinlinna: It's a great place, and one could easily imagine it as something a very rich american with Scottish ansestery has bought in Scottland(?), so its a prop in itself, but I am not sure we need to emphasize this past making the audience believe they are, in a fashion, sitting on the stage (i.e. inside the bankers home) vs. purely in the audience as in a normal opera house.
I am not so sure practical it would be to have the audience move during the performance, but since many of them will be dressed up to go to the opera, we could easily include them into the wedding party? To emphasize this, maybe couple of the actors could sit (and sing from) among the audience. This could also provide for the always changing element Timo-Heikki was after: have the actors that sit in the audience be different and sit in different places every evening.
Anyway, look forfard to all of your ideas.
Earlier comments:
Javier Gombinsky:
Actually, I don't know how useful this comment can be, but now that I think about it, I once read a novel with a character that was a Minister of Economy and he saw money and numbers as a romantic quest for I don't remember what (all i remember is thinking "wow, an interesting minister of economy").
The novel was "Megafon o la Guerra" ("Megafon or The War") by argentinian writer Leopoldo Marechal.
I'll give it another read to see if i can send you some comments (that don't involve stealing the whole character).
Javier Gombinsky:
ida, Timo, of course I totally agree that you guys (all those who favor the banker thing) SHOULD develop the banker idea. I was just saying that I, personally, can't think of a fun, passionate story about a banker that doesn't turn into a macro-economy lesson, but if you guys can pull it off, hats off to you!
Jack Malinowski:
somebody write the aria:
:L
:O
would have could have should have done what was on page 237 of the macro 101 econ. text book and not what was on 102, how could i have been so blind as to use 237 of 101 when 102 of 101 was right there? i must have been thinking 123! i'm ruined! ruined! ruined for life!!! now i'll never be a proper philanthropist! why me?! in tax haven! i never thought it would be! how embarrassing.
:L
Timo Airisto:
@ Javier -LOL!! Well put!
I totally agree that an opera about the macroeconomic finepoints of global economy would be enough to put ADHD crack addicts to sleep, but that was not really my point.
I was more thinking about a story that examined the impact of un-brideled greed in peoples lives. It's just that the real life stories all seem to revolve around bankers and the financial system (yes, there are examples from other fields of corporate life, but their impact on others is so much smaller).
And has opera not always been about big emotions, difficult personal choices, rivaling interests and devastating losses (love or otherwise)? I think that a story about the lenghts a man is driven by his greed, the cost he has to pay along the way and eventual moment of life catching up, could be a good one set in a financial world setting (but maybe as a drama vs. what I first suggested).
@ Iida - happy to cooperate, but I have to confess that I really am not a writer, more of an idea guy.
Iida Hämeen-Anttila:
Dear Javier, there are many interesting stories here. At this point we are still developing ideas and I will be giving feed back to other writers too. Because this is a collective project I think people who have written from similar subjects could share ideas and develop them together.
Iida
"GroundingStick" Carl L:
It interested me 10 years ago, and it will still interest me in 50 years.
Though, I'd like to think that by then I'd be able to add it to my interest in historical blunders.
Jack Malinowski:
javii,
theater is critical.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBEvmAB70kc
Javier Gombinsky
Also:
Would this story have interested you a few years ago?
We should try to write something that would have, a few years ago, now, and in the years to come.
We should write characters as if they shit marble! (Amadeus joke)
signed by an argentinian, who suffered this same crisis nine years ago, and now he could not care less about an opera about this.
Javier Gombinsky:
Please don't take this the wrong way, but if someone forced me to watch an opera about a banker, I'd slit my wrists with my own teeth.
Furthermore, it seems to me that you guys are aiming to make an opera with "social critique" about a specific issue which may or may not involve bankers being evil (maybe a desk full of economists can discuss this, but certainly not me, and probably not an opera that aims to entertain). Intellectuals in every Economy university and Nobel prize winners are still debating who's to blame and why. Speaking as a potential opera attendant, I would never go to an Opera to be lectured about pros and cons of macroeconomy theories.
You guys are doing something completely new here with these project. Please, please don't waste it on a banker story!
Iida Hämeen-Anttila:
Dear Timo-Heikki, Timo, Tatu and Laura-Maija, all four of you have written a story including a greedy banker in a turning point of his life where he has to face the consequences of his choices, a very current topic. As your dramaturg I have a suggestion for you: how about teaming up and trying to combine these stories? I could create a group for you if you'd like to try and work as a team.
Iida
David Johansson:
I like this idea. This idea wont go through if it entails stepping on the toes of the production leaders' political views. But an Opera that points out how the free market and economic growth at any cost philosophy that so many countries follow always lead to grand scale exploitation would be quite refreshing.
And, such a story could easily be put in a space opera setting. :)
"GroundingStick" Carl L.:
The debt-enslavement-conspiracy could be part of this play:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HdmA3vPbSU
(The Goldsmith's Tale)
Which is part of a larger film
http://preview.tinyurl.com/Money-as-Debt-Youtube-Playlist
(Money as Debt)
"GroundingStick" Carl L.:
These songs come to mind immediately:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNs4YiISL-E
(Chumbawamba - How to get your Band on Television)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWLHpuLrpyk
(Chumbawamba - Liberation/Stagnation)