It’s not your grandparents’ opera.”Melancholalaland” is being billed as a trans-media opera, blending live performance of singers with video, animation and digital music.The work by Florida Atlantic University professor Joey Bargsten gets a world premiere Sunday, September 13 at Miami Beach Cinematheque.”For many people the word ‘opera’ brings forth a lot of stereotypes from the 19th century,” Bargsten says. “The images of women in helmets with spears and things.” Vanessa Rose Rivera, mezzo soprano, and Santo Martin Cordero, tenor, presenting a scene from transmedia opera “MelanchoLalaland” at FilmGate Interactive Conference at Miami Light Project in February, 2015.The story in “Melancholalaland” is centered on a global corporation called Melancuria, Inc., which specializes in anti-melancholia drugs and drive-through self-pleasure technologies, and how the company executives deal with protesting mobs, disgruntled employees and dissatisfied lovers.Bargsten, who teaches music composition at FAU’s Davie Campus and lives in Hollywood, says that “Melancholalaland” has more in common with new school composers such as Olivier Messian, Alban Berg, Philip Glass and John Adams than old school Mozart, Wagner, Verdi and Puccini.Use the source link above to see the entire story!
