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July 01, 2008
"The Fly The Opera" debuts: Cronenberg and Shore are amused
LAOpera's production of "The Fly The Opera" is premiering in Paris at Théâtre du Châtelet. Synopsis: "'The Fly 'is an engrossing exploration of the physical and psychological transformation in which a brilliant scientist begins to mutate into a hybrid of man and fly after one of his experiments goes horribly wrong. Researcher Seth Brundle makes a stunning breakthrough in the field of matter transportation when he successfully teleports a living creature. Frustrated in his budding romance with a scientific journalist, and in need of a human subject, he recklessly attempts to teleport himself. An unseen fly enters the transmission booth as well, however, and Brundle soon realizes that his experiment has had "mixed" results." An AP dispatch via NPR. Coverage from Sydney Morning Herald, where Cronenberg says, "It's a magical re-living of a part of my life, this time playing a completely different role in the creation of a very different animal. I can't wait to see what happens." The Globe & Mail went backstage: "With opening night coming up, it's a little bit tendu – how do you say? Yes, tense,” whispers the assistant from le Châtelet as he picks his way past the two baboon puppets, one furry and happy, one slimy and not. Yet it hardly seems tendu in the theatre as the rehearsal begins. The chauvinistically inclined might suggest that it's the calming presence of all those Canadians: Shore and Cronenberg hail from Toronto, and tenor David Curry, who plays the love rival Stathis Borans, grew up nearby in Oakville, Ont. Daniel Okulitch, the bass-baritone who plays the central role of scientific-genius-turned-household-pest Seth Brundle, is a Calgary boy." The promo video is here, including an interview with composer Howard Shore, a childhood friend of David Cronenberg. Cronenberg directs; Placido Domingo conducts; the libretto is by David Henry Hwang; Dante Ferretti designs; and costumes are by Denise Cronenberg. More at Shore's site and LAOpera, where the production moves in September. A PDF of the announcement is here. The synopsis of the 1950s-set production: 
THE FLY: THE STORY
The opera is set in the 1950s.
Act I
In the darkness, voices are heard counting out binary code, sequences of zeroes or ones. The lights rise upon banks of computers and video monitors, which gradually become transparent to reveal the proverbial "ghosts in the machine" staring out at us. The ghosts repeat two words: "Help me."
A hi-tech laboratory is filled with equipment covered in gore. Veronica Quaife sits in the center of the gruesome scene as police officers examine the room. A female officer asks Veronica if she would like to change out of her bloody clothing. "It's only blood," Veronica replies, adding cryptically: "The new flesh has come."
Veronica recalls a cocktail party three months earlier, hosted by Particle magazine. A scientific journalist, she is attending with her boss, Stathis Borans, the editor of Particle magazine. She meets researcher Seth Brundle, who giddily boasts of an invention that he 
has been working on in secret. Against her better judgment, she agrees to go with him to his laboratory.
He shows her two telepods, and asks her for something that is uniquely hers. She removes a stocking and watches as Brundle places it inside one of the pods. A camera projects the image of the telepod's interior onto a computer screen. A molecular analysis begins (voiced by the ghosts in the machine). A burst of light flashes inside the pod, and the image on the computer screen reveals that the stocking is no longer there. When Brundle opens the second pod and shows Veronica the stocking transported there, she realizes that he has discovered the secret of teleportation.
Veronica tells Stathis of Brundle's discovery. Veronica and Stathis have been engaged in a love affair, which she is determined to end once and for all. He is convinced that Brundle's discovery is a trick. Brundle himself arrives now, asking Veronica to write a book about his work, which he says has a few problems to work out.
Back in Brundle's lab, Veronica watches as Brundle attempts to teleport a baboon. But something is not right, and the computers are unable to process the molecular analysis of a complex organism. When the second telepod is opened, we see the mangled remains of the baboon turned literally inside out.
Veronica tries to console Brundle, and the two kiss. After devoting so many years to his frustrating work, he is now inspired by her to continue searching for the success that has eluded him.
After further research and experimentation, Seth and Veronica attempt once again to teleport a baboon. This time, they are successful.
Stathis, making a presentation to a group of scientists, reveals what Brundle has been working on. Outraged, Veronica agrees to meet with Stathis one last time. As she exits Seth's lab, we hear the buzzing of a fly.
Seth returns to his lab with champagne and groceries. He sees a note from Veronica: "I have an old life to scrape off my shoe once and for all." Seth muses that, as exciting as his new romance is, nothing can match the thrill of scientific discovery. He activates the telepods and climbs inside. We see his image on the video monitor and the teleportation sequence begins. But the camera, set for automatic movement tracking, now focuses on a fly speeding into the telepod just before the door closes behind it. Brundle emerges from the second telepod, his first attempt at human teleportation an apparent success.
Act II
In the present, Veronica's conversation with the female police officer continues. The computer monitors show video imagery of Brundle performing amazing physical feats. Veronica recalls how everything seemed to change when she returned to the lab after Seth's triumph.
We see Seth amazed to find that he is a changed man. His body now moves as quickly as his mind, and he now has a voracious appetite and is sexually indefatigable. He rejoices that his experiment has freed him from his previously cerebral life. Veronica discovers bristly hairs growing on Seth's back, which she cuts off, and suspects that something has gone wrong.
Marky, a cowboy, is at a busy dive bar with his girlfriend Tawny. Brundle walks in and unsuccessfully tries to hit on Tawny. When Marky calls him on it, Brundle suggests that they arm wrestle: fifty dollars if Marky wins, but Tawny goes home with Seth if the scientist wins. Confident as well as broke, Marky quickly agrees. They begin and Seth promptly fractures Marky's arm.
Seth takes Tawny home. After a night spent making love, he urges her to go through the telepods, promising her an amazing rush. She rushes out.
Veronica takes the hair samples to a lab and learns that they seem to be from a fly. She is terrified that Seth seems to be addicted to his new powers, but Seth accuses her of being jealous of him. They break up.
During the next four weeks, Seth sees disturbing side effects of his experiment. His fingernails fall out, followed by his teeth. He reviews the computer records of his teleportation and discovers that two life forms were involved, himself and a fly. Did his body absorb the fly? Negative, the Ghosts in the Machine reply: Brundle and the fly have been fused at the molecular level. They are now "Brundlefly."
Every day brings new changes. Unable to eat solid meals, Seth learns to vomit digestive fluids onto his food and reingest them. His fingers and toes fall off; his skin cracks. Terrified and alone, he begs Veronica to see him again. Shocked at his transformation, she asks Stathis to help find a cure. She recounts a nightmare she has had, in which she gives birth to Seth's mutant child, a grotesque larva. She tells Stathis that she is, in fact, pregnant.
Brundle reflects on the driving force of both insects and humans: to live, to kill, and to destroy anything that gets in their way. He warns Veronica to stay away; although he loves her, he can no longer guarantee that he won't kill her.
Stathis takes Veronica to a doctor in order to terminate her pregnancy. When Veronica is left alone in the examination room, Brundle appears, begging her to keep his child. When she refuses, he scoops her into his arms and takes her back to his lab. Seth has decided to decrease the percentage of fly in his body by taking Veronica through the telepods with him, fusing the four of them - the fly, Brundle, Veronica and their unborn child - together forever. He initiates the teleportation sequence, then forces her into one of the telepods and shuts himself into the other one.
Stathis arrives in time to release Veronica. They try to shut down the equipment, but their attempts only confuse the computer, which degenerates into chaos. When the telepod door opens, Seth has been turned inside out, just like the baboon. Barely alive, he whispers "Help me." "I will," she replies, taking Stathis' gun and shooting him.
Back in the present, Veronica tells the police officer that Brundle lives on, in the form of her child. She can no longer bear the thought of destroying all that remains of her beloved. "All hail the new flesh," murmur the Ghosts in the Machine."
Posted by Ray Pride at July 1, 2008 08:00 PM
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