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charameiIf opera is the disapproving grandfather of the modern musical then operetta is its batty elderly aunt, the one who sits in the corner at parties alternating between being violently racist and telling the dirtiest jokes you've ever heard.
She also has the weirdest stories to tell, if you have the time to listen. There's the one about the pirates, the one about the fairies marrying the Lords... and the one about the revenge of the bat.
But she can only tell that one in German, so someone has to translate it. And when the translator is the family's chavvy teenage cousin, who's smashed off his head and rather free with the details, well, then you might come close to what I've just seen.
One of the advantages of the operetta being 150 years old is that I don't feel bound by any sort of spoiler code, so...
...see, the thing is, the version I saw wasn't exactly Auntie Operetta's standard, and it's ages since I saw that. So. With the help of Wikipedia, the original as told by Auntie, and Cousin's modern adaptation.
Act 1 Eisenstein's apartment
Gabriel von Eisenstein has been sentenced toeight days three weeks in prison rehab for insulting an official snorting cocaine, partially due to the incompetence of his attorney, Dr. Blind [who is A WOMAN, chavvy cousin tells us emphatically]. Adele, Eisenstein's maid, receives a letter from her sister, who is in the company of the ballet an actress, inviting her to Prince Orlofsky's ball. She pretends the letter says that her aunt is very sick, and asks for a leave of absence ("My sister Ida writes to me"). Falke, Eisenstein's friend, arrives to invite him to the ball singles party (Duet: "Come with me to the souper"). Eisenstein bids farewell to Adele and his wife Rosalinde, pretending he is going to prison rehab (Terzett: "Oh dear, oh dear, how sorry I am") but really intending to postpone jail rehab for one day and have fun at the ball party.
After Eisenstein leaves, Rosalinde is visited by her lover, the singing teacher Alfred, who serenades her ("Dove that has escaped" 'Think of Me' from Phantom of the Opera). Frank, the governor of the prison director of the rehab clinic, arrives to take Eisenstein to jail rehab, and finds Alfred instead. In order not to compromise Rosalinde, Alfred agrees to pretend to be Eisenstein and to accompany Frank. (Finale, drinking song: "Happy is he who forgets" followed by Rosalinde’s defence when Frank arrives: "In tête-à-tête with me so late," and Frank’s invitation: "My beautiful, large bird-cage.")
Act 2 A summer house in the Villa Orlovsky
It turns out that Falke, with Prince Orlofsky's permission, is orchestrating the ball as a way of getting revenge on Eisenstein. The previous winter, Eisenstein had abandoned a drunken Falke dressed as a bat (and thus explaining the opera's title) in the center of town, exposing him to ridicule the next day. As part of his scheme, Falke has invited Frank, Adele, and Rosalinde to the ball as well. Rosalinde pretends to be a Hungarian countess, Eisenstein goes by the name "Marquis Renard," Frank is "Chevalier Chagrin," and Adele pretends she is an actress.
The ball is in progress (Chorus: "A souper is before us") and the Prince welcomes his guests ("I love to invite my friends"). Eisenstein is introduced to Adele, but is confused as to who she really is because of her striking resemblance to his maid. ("My lord marquis," sometimes referred to as "Adele's Laughing Song").
Then Falke introduces the disguised Rosalinde to Eisenstein (Csárdás: "Sounds from home"). During an amorous tête-à-tête, she succeeds in extracting avaluable limited edition Mickey-Mouse design Rolex watch from her husband's pocket, something which she can use in the future as evidence of his impropriety. (Watch duet: "My eyes will soon be dim"). In a rousing finale, the company celebrates (The Drinking song: "In the fire stream of the grape"; followed by the canon: "Brothers, brothers and sisters"; and the ballet and waltz finale [with dolls], "Ha, what joy, what a night of delight.")
Act 3 In theprison offices rehab clinic of Governor Frank
The next morning they all find themselves at theprison rehab clinic where the confusion increases and is compounded by the jailer, Frosch, who has profited by the absence of the prison director to become gloriously drunk.
Adele arrives to obtain the assistance of the Chevalier Chagrin (Melodrama; Couplet of Adele: "If I play the innocent peasant maid") while Alfred wants nothing more than to get out ofjail rehab. Knowing of Eisenstein's trickery, Rosalinde wants to begin an action for divorce, and Frank is still intoxicated.
Frosch locks up Adele and her sister Ida, and the height of the tumult arrives when Falke appears with all the guests of the ball and declares the whole thing is an act of vengeance for the "Fledermaus". (Trio between Rosalinde, Eisenstein, Alfred: "A strange adventure"). Everything is amicably arranged (with Eisenstein blaming the intoxicating effects of champagne for his act of infidelity and Orlofsky volunteering to support Adele's artistic career), but Eisenstein is compelled to serve his full term injail rehab (Finale, "Oh bat, oh bat, at last let thy victim escape").
I told you Auntie Operetta was batty. But these are only the cosmetic changes: the translation was completely new, to the point where many of the songs were only recognisable by their scores. The swearing was updated - rather than the nowadays rather genteel 'Good Lord, she's pocketed my watch!", Eisenstein exclaimed, "Oh, shit, she's gone and nicked my watch!" - which is probably closer to the original, taking historical context and translation censorship into account. The Prince (traditionally sung mezzo-soprano) was described as 'fruity' and was, when he showed up, flamboyant in hot pink and black. The Eisensteins were tacky nouveau-riche who wouldn't have been out of place in a line-up next to Posh and Becks - at least, until they opened their mouths and started singing opera - and the script took pops at everything from Andrew Lloyd Webber to Tony Blair.
Oh, yes. And during the scene change between Acts 2 and 3, Eisenstein and Frank - who are of course going to the same place, but don't know it - came out and entertained the audience with their journey home. Sounds boring?
You know you're wattching opera do something special when it comes out from behind the fourth wall and runs rampant through the audience, panto-style.
It was... bizarre, especially at first. But somehow, it worked. The actors were all excellent; the translation was mostly very good, save for a couple of rhyming/scansion problems, and of course the music was wonderful and the plot, being a farce, can happen anywhere, at any time. Perhaps most importantly, it was still funny.
Because really, that's the most important thing about Auntie Operetta, isn't it?
/\/\/\
"The spirit of your husband is here... in this room. He's standing right next to you..."
"No I'm not! I'm over here!"
I always forget how good the original Randall and Hopkirk (deceased) is. Then it comes back on ITV4...
She also has the weirdest stories to tell, if you have the time to listen. There's the one about the pirates, the one about the fairies marrying the Lords... and the one about the revenge of the bat.
But she can only tell that one in German, so someone has to translate it. And when the translator is the family's chavvy teenage cousin, who's smashed off his head and rather free with the details, well, then you might come close to what I've just seen.
One of the advantages of the operetta being 150 years old is that I don't feel bound by any sort of spoiler code, so...
...see, the thing is, the version I saw wasn't exactly Auntie Operetta's standard, and it's ages since I saw that. So. With the help of Wikipedia, the original as told by Auntie, and Cousin's modern adaptation.
Act 1 Eisenstein's apartment
Gabriel von Eisenstein has been sentenced to
After Eisenstein leaves, Rosalinde is visited by her lover, the singing teacher Alfred, who serenades her (
Act 2 A summer house in the Villa Orlovsky
It turns out that Falke, with Prince Orlofsky's permission, is orchestrating the ball as a way of getting revenge on Eisenstein. The previous winter, Eisenstein had abandoned a drunken Falke dressed as a bat (and thus explaining the opera's title) in the center of town, exposing him to ridicule the next day. As part of his scheme, Falke has invited Frank, Adele, and Rosalinde to the ball as well. Rosalinde pretends to be a Hungarian countess, Eisenstein goes by the name "Marquis Renard," Frank is "Chevalier Chagrin," and Adele pretends she is an actress.
The ball is in progress (Chorus: "A souper is before us") and the Prince welcomes his guests ("I love to invite my friends"). Eisenstein is introduced to Adele, but is confused as to who she really is because of her striking resemblance to his maid. ("My lord marquis," sometimes referred to as "Adele's Laughing Song").
Then Falke introduces the disguised Rosalinde to Eisenstein (Csárdás: "Sounds from home"). During an amorous tête-à-tête, she succeeds in extracting a
Act 3 In the
The next morning they all find themselves at the
Adele arrives to obtain the assistance of the Chevalier Chagrin (Melodrama; Couplet of Adele: "If I play the innocent peasant maid") while Alfred wants nothing more than to get out of
Frosch locks up Adele and her sister Ida, and the height of the tumult arrives when Falke appears with all the guests of the ball and declares the whole thing is an act of vengeance for the "Fledermaus". (Trio between Rosalinde, Eisenstein, Alfred: "A strange adventure"). Everything is amicably arranged (with Eisenstein blaming the intoxicating effects of champagne for his act of infidelity and Orlofsky volunteering to support Adele's artistic career), but Eisenstein is compelled to serve his full term in
I told you Auntie Operetta was batty. But these are only the cosmetic changes: the translation was completely new, to the point where many of the songs were only recognisable by their scores. The swearing was updated - rather than the nowadays rather genteel 'Good Lord, she's pocketed my watch!", Eisenstein exclaimed, "Oh, shit, she's gone and nicked my watch!" - which is probably closer to the original, taking historical context and translation censorship into account. The Prince (traditionally sung mezzo-soprano) was described as 'fruity' and was, when he showed up, flamboyant in hot pink and black. The Eisensteins were tacky nouveau-riche who wouldn't have been out of place in a line-up next to Posh and Becks - at least, until they opened their mouths and started singing opera - and the script took pops at everything from Andrew Lloyd Webber to Tony Blair.
Oh, yes. And during the scene change between Acts 2 and 3, Eisenstein and Frank - who are of course going to the same place, but don't know it - came out and entertained the audience with their journey home. Sounds boring?
- They were both still pretending to be French, using the most hilarious accents this side of Spamalot.
- They're going the same way, so keep saying goodbye and bumping into one another again.
- They were brilliant improvisers:
- "Hey, it's someone under forty!"
- "Can I 'ave your e-mail?"
"Oui! Eet ees chevalier at outRAGEous French accent dot com!" - "I am the director of this alcoholic rehalibutation clinic... bally halitosis clinic... it's a place for people who're accilted..."
"An addict rehabilitation clinic?"
"That's easy for you to say..." - "Frosch, let me in!"
"No!"
"No? What do you mean, no?"
"We're not finished yet. You'll have to ad-lib a bit longer."
You know you're wattching opera do something special when it comes out from behind the fourth wall and runs rampant through the audience, panto-style.
It was... bizarre, especially at first. But somehow, it worked. The actors were all excellent; the translation was mostly very good, save for a couple of rhyming/scansion problems, and of course the music was wonderful and the plot, being a farce, can happen anywhere, at any time. Perhaps most importantly, it was still funny.
Because really, that's the most important thing about Auntie Operetta, isn't it?
"The spirit of your husband is here... in this room. He's standing right next to you..."
"No I'm not! I'm over here!"
I always forget how good the original Randall and Hopkirk (deceased) is. Then it comes back on ITV4...
no subject
Date: 2011-04-06 05:22 pm (UTC)