BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
Cora and Dora may not sound like typical lead characters in a murder mystery. But played by soprano Taryn Srhoj and mezzo-soprano Jermaine Chau, they’re the stars of a new operatic comedy about two women, a failing business and a dead body.
Composer Paul Smith talks us through Blush Opera’s production Fancy Me Dead and what he thinks it means for a male composer to craft an all-woman work.
How did Fancy Me Dead come about?
One night last year, Taryn, Jermaine and I were out at a concert. Off the cuff, I threw a proposal at them outlining a show where two women meet for a business meeting and a dead body drops in halfway through. The idea seemed to spark with them and it was a new type of project for Blush. Shortly after this night, they told me they were looking for a show to develop in 2015 and that they would love to work with me, so I started on the score.
In terms of plot, this show certainly sounds like a modern one. But are there any subtle references back to the tales and tragedies of classic operas past?
Having been a budding opera singer myself, I know the dominant opera archetypes and scenarios but I wanted to move away from this as much as possible to make the show reflect some contemporary themes. I feel that the drama and intensity of opera is not a dated or boring way of portraying relationships or situations. That being said, I find myself making use of some typical opera devices – and they are used for a reason.
There is a short overture played on piano at the beginning that weaves together the main themes of the show. There are two typical arias where the narrative of the show stops and the characters have a chance to show off their voices a bit more, this is very standard opera structuring. There are also some really romantic moments in the music. I don’t tend to write romantic music very much, but the show’s themes call for them and they help play with the darkness of the main plot.
As a male composer, what have been the challenges of writing for a story about the relationship between two women?
This is so tricky – when I teach, I want young performers and composers to be aware of these types of politics, they are imbued in music even if we don’t see them. I try to be ever-conscious of these things. I could never know the difficulties of being a business-minded woman in this world. But that was part of the impetus. There are so few female characters in the operatic world that exist outside of their relationship to men. I tried to avoid being didactic in the libretto – there is no decrying of male-centric capitalism. There are many female opera composers who do that better than I could. However, it was very helpful having two specific women for whom to write and also workshop the plot and characters. Taryn and Jermaine are now happy to tell me what Cora and Dora would and wouldn’t do. I sketched the outlines of these women in the score but their performance certainly gives them shading and colour far beyond my notes and words.
How does a 21st Century composer go about writing a dark comedy for opera?
This is where my love of musical theatre has held me in good stead. Musical theatre composers are generally so adept at dealing with dark things in a comedic way. So even though my musical material is quite different from classic musical theatre most of the time (not always!), I try to channel my inner Betty Comden and Stephen Sondheim to help structure my narrative and characters in a dark yet endearing way.
Similarly, having been influenced by composers such as Prokofiev, how did you find writing music for a cabaret-inspired opera?
To be completely honest, it was a lot of fun. I have not had many opportunities to flex my composing muscle for theatrical work, and thinking about the aesthetic of cabaret, which was born out of the night life freedom in early 20th Century Europe, opened up my music to many new influences. This was also the time most of my favourite composers were alive.
I have a love/hate relationship with my music, but for the most part I enjoy hearing this score. My musical inspiration are still there and my hands move towards regular patterns when I’m composing at the piano, but I’d like to imagine Prokofiev in Berlin in the 1930s on stage with a face full of white make-up.
See Blush Opera’s Fancy Me Dead on October 3 in Katoomba and October 12 in Potts Point. More info and bookings www.newmusicnetwork.com.au.
Image supplied.
