The Creators Project: "Dey" and "dem" are examples of words unlikely to be found in renditions of Verdi’s La traviata or Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, but these expressive and fragmented sounds have now been scored in the world’s first pidgin opera.
3 comments:
I love Opera and this show sounds very cool. I don’t necessarily think this is an equal comparison, but it reminds me of when I saw FELA on Broadway. I really appreciated how the production did a wonderful job in bringing the audience into the world of the characters, giving us a sense of Africa at the time. What is interesting about this Opera is, first of all as the author of the article pointed out, Opera is a romance language dominated theatre. Second the show is based on West African folklore, a specific story that is exciting and mysterious. With these elements I think the production will hopefully be able to attract a wider audience, opera fans, people who are attracted to and interested in West African culture, and fans of folktales. What would really be cool is if there was an article that talked about the design aspects of the show.
I am always excited to hear about opera productions and companies that stray from the Western canon to explore the art form itself and break free from what is considered opera. Of course the centuries of opera culture that have created what we know today are important, but going to the source of it and re-inventing it in a new way is what we need today. This particular production is even more important because it bridges a huge cultural gap, between Nigerian music and the world of opera, between pidgin and “high” art. I love that Helen Parker-Jayne Isisbor is breaking the stereotype of stuffy white people singing Mozart, Puccini or Wagner; it’s a phenomenon that is definitely happening in new American opera right now, and it’s very exciting. The article doesn’t mention if she performed this opera in Nigeria, and I’d be really curious to hear about the reception this piece would get there.
Based off the concept of this opera, it sounds amazing. To me it makes a lot of sense. Telling stories through music is something people see in the vast majority of cultures, so combining the musical elements of different cultures can easily blend into something that represents both but feels like a cohesive thing. I also like that the inspiration for the opera was a woman who wanted to see herself better represented on the stage and decided to make a play that filled that gap. I think there are a lot of stories that should be a told and many people notice which stories are missing, but it is great when someone is in a position where they can tell the missing story. I would love to see this production, both because of the way it blends cultures and represents an underrepresented culture, and because it seems like it would sound beautiful.
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