Opera
Opera is a theatrical art form unique for being sung throughout, rather than spoken. It integrates art forms such as acting, scenery design, costume, and dance, and requires that its performers (opera singers) be rigorously trained. It has spread throughout the world, but it is most common and most beloved in Human, High Elf, and Moon Elf cultures.
Opera plots tend to follow grand, melodramatic stories involving royals, the Fey, or supernatural occurrences. Tragedies are more common on the whole than comedies, but the most beloved operas are approximately an equal split of both.
Famous Operas
- Queen of Winter. Tragedy; written by Corello Archavietto, Y10. This sympathetic portrait of the Queen of the Night's loss in the ancient wars of the archfey is the oldest surviving opera. Though it is considered one of the great masterpieces of high elf culture, its performance is banned in Cantonova.
- The Betrayal of Bastien. Tragedy; written by Dimetreo Piavë, Y405. A fictionalized portrayal of the political machinations behind the scenes of the Siege of Bjália that led to Bjália's downfall in the War of Great Sorrow. Considered a great masterpiece of high elven culture, with a fiendishly difficult overture, entr'acte, and death march that are often performed separately by orchestras as a concert suite.
- The Prince and the Peasant. Comedy; written by Anton Ansbech, Y625. A peasant girl, Marie, falls in love with a mysterious traveling merchant who turns out to be a runaway prince of Val-Nurem. This is the most popular Human opera.
- The Snowfall Masquerade. Comedy; written by Johan Novorsnik, Y898. Marchioness Liliana doubts the faithfulness of her husband Alberto, so she dresses up her maid Adelina as a foreign actress and sends her to spy on him at the prince's Snowfall's Eve ball.
- The Phantom of the Opera. Tragedy; written by Anders Lÿddvever, Y986. An apprentice dancer, Kristyne, receives lessons and guidance from a voice deep in the caverns of her opera company's hall. Soon, problems begin to arise within the company's ranks. Will Kristyne's patron save the company? Or is this mysterious figure the cause of all their ills? This melodramatic Dwarven opera is wildly beloved within Erdelan, but derided for its lack of artistic merit and blatant plagiarism in other lands.
- Lair of the Beholder. Tragedy; written by Katerina Woyznic, Y1060. A party of three adventurers (an Enchantress, a Champion, and a Rogue) descends into the lair of an evil Warlock and the unknown eldritch power he has summoned. Famously, the Y1060 premiere of this opera was cut short by one of the worst storms in Cantonova history, which destroyed the opera house in a massive flood. Woyznic and all four of the opera's major stars were killed in the process of trying to rescue the rest of the chorus, company, stagehands, and pit musicians.
- The Maid of the Mist. Tragedy; written by David Longivy, Y1108. A young fisherman from the Near Isles finds a pale young woman washed up on the shore and falls desperately in love with her. Is she a fisherman's daughter? A cursed princess? Or something far more sinister?
History
The earliest predecessors to opera were developed in the Age of Integrity, though no complete works from the era survive.
Execution
Opera singers train rigorously through apprenticeships and in conservatories dedicated to the arts. They study Common, Elvish, and Celestial-- the three most common languages in the repertoire-- as well as the arts of vocal technique, acting, dance, music theory, and basic stagecraft magics.
Though the operas of the past hundred years often employ magic to amplify or alter singers' voices, an opera singer whose voice does not fill a large hall on their own power can expect a lackluster career.
Important Locations
Comments