#raoul is objectively the best choice | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nerdyfangirl67 · 4 years

Note

hey, when you have time, can you write a oneshot or headcanon with the reader is raoul’s younger sister and very intelligent and curious, so she decide to find the phantom because she wants to protect her brother, but when she and Erik meet they end up falling for each other? They can have like a enemies to lovers relationship at first 👉🏻👈🏻 Thank you :)

OH MY GOSH, darling, I am so sorry this is so late! I was going to try and write a one-shot but saw you mentioned a headcanon (and because these have been easier for me to write lately and because I enjoy writing them), I thought I would finally respond to this ask.

I hope you see this anon and thank you for the request!! I liked writing this one a lot! And I hope you enjoy it! :)

Protecting your brother, Raoul, from the masked Opera phantom hadn’t been something you just woke up one morning knowing you had to do.

Rather, it had been something you had felt you needed to do.

You knew your brother would never be able to look at the situation with the Phantom and Christine objectively.

You also knew that Christine wasn’t exactly the best person for the job, as the Phantom was already furious with her engagement to Raoul.

So the job became yours. Or so you decided.

Finding the tunnels of the Opera Populaire had been the easy part, once you had come to the decision.

Finding the Phantom among the tunnels though was going to be much harder. From what you knew about him, he was mysterious.

And dark-natured.

And something of a recluse.

You also knew that his heart, his feelings, were a mess, thanks to your future sister-in-law, as well as all the others who had come into his life and threw him away.

You spent days working your way through the tunnels, each night going back to the bed Christine let you use. She thought you wanted to spend time getting to know her better, on top of your music studies (which you had been doing at the Opera Populaire). Truthfully, you had said yes to staying in her room in hopes of finding more clues that would lead you to the Phantom.

After days of searching, you finally happened upon his candle-lit, foggy cavern.

You weren’t too excited about having to cross along the wet edge of the underground river, but you knew you had to do it.

You reach a cobblestone set of steps that lead up away from the shore of the river, to an open layout ‘room.

You take each step, your heart climbing in your chest as you do.

Sitting at the organ and playing a dark melody, seemingly unaware of your presence, was the famed Phantom.

Or at least you thought, as all you could see of him was his broad back, covered in a black cloak.

“Ah, the young Vicomte de Chagny. I was wondering when you would come to visit. I imagine you are here to make your case for Raoul, and subsequently la belle Christine.” He turns around, facing you for the first time.

You struggle to find words, not wanting to sound like a young, foolish girl in front of him. “Yes, monsieur. I have.” You pause as he stands, an imposing figure, his mask creating an air of mystery around him. “He is my brother, and although some of the choices he and Christine made were rather foolish, I must protect him.”

His lips quirk up in a smirk as he responds. “Foolish, that is one way to phrase it.” He takes a step closer to you, closing the distance between the two of you. “What would you do to protect him little Vicomte de Chagny?”

You stare him dead in the eyes, or what you can see of his eyes, and answer. “I would do whatever it takes monsieur.”

A twisted smile comes across his face. “Well then, little Vicomte, if you want to save your brother, I want you to become my muse, mon ange de la musique.”

The request comes so natural, almost as if he already knew what he wanted from you before you even arrived. You wanted to say no, but you knew that to protect your brother, you would have to say yes.

So you nod before saying, “If that is what it will take monsieur.”

And so you became a muse to the famed and feared Phantom of the Opera Populaire.

He asked you to listen to his music, to say how it made you feel. He wanted you to talk about yourself, to tell him secrets you had never told anyone else. Most importantly, he wanted you to spend more and more time with him in his cavern.

At first you felt weird and uncomfortable around him, not entirely sure of how to act. But the more time you spent with him, the more you started to enjoy your time with him, even treasure it.

It doesn’t take you long to realize that you had fallen in love with him. Everything about him intrigued you and drew you in. You had come to know the man behind the mask, the man no one else ever saw and it made you love him even more.

It was weeks before you could summon the courage to say something. The two of you were sitting on the organ bench and you were leaning against his shoulder as he played. “Mon fantôme. Je t'aime.” You typically spoke in his native tongue, French, as you knew he loved to hear you speak it.

You hadn’t meant to say it though, it just slipped out but you were glad you did, as now he knew how you felt.

His playing slowed but didn’t stop. “I know, ma chérie. I know. Je t’aime mon ange.”

#poto #poto fanfic #poto hc #poto fanfiction #poto fandom #POTO headcanon #phantom of the opera #phantom of the opera headcanon #phantom of the opera reader insert #phantom of the opera fanfiction #phantom x reader #phantom x you #erik destler reader insert #nerdyfangirl67

88 notes · View notes

faded-florals · 4 years

Note

Hello! Just wanted to say that I love your blog! Please continue posting about Hadley/Raoul :D By the way, have you found any material on how Hadley got cast as Raoul? I LOVE him in the role but I've always wondered why they chose him, considering he didn't have any experience with POTO? Thanks!

There is very little if anything official written or recorded about Hadley’s time in POTO, and unfortunately I don’t think even Hadley himself could answer this question very well. So this is all just going to be speculation, stemming from a jumbled timeline built from limited interviews from Hadley and those around him. Some of my main sources of info are the podcasts he’s done, his official website, and some easily google-able articles from around that time.

Hadley was playing Javert in the West End starting in June 2011, which is no small thing. From what scrounging I’ve done while trying to be objective, his performance was well received, but that was (and still is) fairly typical for Hadley - he’s great at what he does and people often recognize him for that. Though he did not have much on his professional CV at the time, he was far from a nobody.

It’s a bit of a mystery why the directors of POTO 25 ended up choosing Hadley when they had multiple alumni Raouls to pick from. Maybe all of them didn’t have the availability for that intense 2 week rehearsal schedule? Or they just didn’t want to take on the role of Raoul again? Or maybe none of them felt right with Ramin and Sierra, who had a lot of potential to just steamroll whoever ended up playing Raoul with their unstoppable chemistry, experience or not.

Whatever it was, I do think Ramin played a part in Hadley landing the role. Their band Sheytoons was fairly active at the time, so they were running in the same circles and likely had more than a few friends/acquaintances/connections in common. Whether Ramin spoke to the casting directors and recommended Hadley, or Hadley caught wind of the production and put in an audition we just don’t know. Someone ask Ramin, maybe? God knows Hadley doesn’t remember.

Anyways, I personally think that Hadley was offered the role without auditioning, as something similar happened in reverse to Ramin shortly after POTO 25th, when he was offered the part of Valjean alongside Hadley’s Javert in Les Mis. Casting directors are well aware of how important chemistry is, and Ramin and Hadley have just that. I think the directors of POTO 25th saw much of the same thing when they cast Hadley opposite Ramin’s Phantom. Like I’ve been screaming into the rafters on this blog since the beginning, Hadley did wonderfully as Raoul in POTO 25, so I think ultimately he was the best choice for the role, especially when you consider the special circumstances of that production.

I wish I had a better answer for you, but thank you for your kind words and for asking anyways! 😬👍

#Phantom Of The Opera #Poto #Hadley Fraser #Ramin Karimloo #Phantom Of The Opera 25th #basically I know nothing #but I try #I've got great enthusiasm though #I know some people still be salty over his casting #but for real who else could have survived Rierra #no one #no one that's who #ask fadedflorals

73 notes · View notes

i-am-vpelno · 4 years

Text

Review of Love Never Dies (aka Phantom of the Opera 2):

I’m no theatre expert so I assume the reason it takes a while to start is so people can get to their seats but yeah it takes a minute to actually start the show. First song is one of my favorite though the giant ass picture of Christine is awkward.

I’m sorry but I hate the clowns in this entire thing it’s just too much and I don’t like their songs. Aside from the main three, who are tolerable and kinda have unique characters. Costumes and sets are beautiful. The sets are quite sparse however, I think a few more walls and little pieces of furniture could’ve added to everything.

The previous performance explains that they are now in Coney Island America instead of Paris and explains some of the acts. This makes it weird for Meg’s performance to also explain the performance rather than show off a unique song. At the same time, I still like this performance because it shows how non-special she is. Also I’m going to assume the lethargic dancing was a purposeful decision to show that Meg just isn’t that good. I really like the actress’s voice and acting tho.

I love love love the introduction to the new De Chagny family and how they’re not used to this American brashness that the actors play up. Raoul has a complete character shift that, while its an amazing performance, I don’t understand it compared to the ‘Charming Prince’ he was in Phantom. I like Christine’s comforting song to Gustav but I feel like it was just put in to enforce the “LOOK, LOOK HOW MUCH I LOVE MY SON” thing. Also, if the events of Phantom were so traumatic that Raoul can’t stand music and Christine gets PTSD flashbacks from that familiar tune, I’d just leave. 1 point to Raoul for recognizing that this isn’t a great situation.

Fucking, best song goes to Beneath A Moonless Sky. Like, I feel that, I believe that, I’m in that tension like UGH THE CHEMISTRY!!!!! Like if Lloyd put in a weird on stage no nudity sex scene I’d be there for it honestly. THE WAY ERIC GRIPS HIS THIGHS AND THEN SHE CARESSES HIS HEAD I BELIEVE THEY SEXED. Like she even stares at his lips as he gets closer and they just get closer as they specifically recount the sexing. It’s just UGH it’s all there, the song, the body language, the emotion in their voices. Seriously though this is super believable and I even imagined this happening before I saw this but, and this can be said for the entire show, it’s just stuff shoed in for a second story.

Once Upon Another Time is weird and shouldn’t be there because Christine is obviously done with the Phantom so it’s weird that she sings a whole diddy about love and stuff. The only part I like is that when she drops the “no choice” bit the Phantom seems to realize she’s not happy with Raoul, or so I assume. Then Phantom starts being psycho again and Christine is like 👁👄👁 shock. Like you knew he been bad wtf you on Christine???

I like the reprisals, though I feel they’re too squished together, they’re put in places where it’s like “uh oh, the phantom’s acting up again, remember this tune?” Or to exacerbate the mood. Also something I forgot to mention, this time around the Phantom has object inventions such as a self driving carriage and ?electric? Toys to show he’s improved as an engineer/inventor.

I also fucking love the reunion between the Madame, Meg, Christine and Raoul. Though Raoul and Madame aren’t old friends?? But the spicy tension here is amazing for interactions not with the Phantom! Again though, the Phantom is a criminal and Raoul is a “famous” viscount. The move should be grab your wife and kid then go to the police. Also, I have started shipping Meg/Raoul lol.

Remember the creepy kids from Nightmare Before Christmas? Yeah, that’s the three clowns...making the Phantom Oogey Boogy lol. Okay, I specifically hate singing children, I always have but have not specific reason. “He plays like me 😲” I hate the way he says this JFC along with “I want to know what you think 😯” But the “10 Years OLD😫” is amazing tbh.

THE BEAUTY UNDERNEATH SUCKS ITS A MAURY STYLE QUESTIONNAIRE PUT IN A SONG DAMN IT!!!! It’s just an excuse to be weird!! Also is this glorifying freak shows or something? Something about how the “not so bad” guy is associated with the “freaks” makes me feel some type of way that I can’t define. It’s a weird translation but the Phantom’s face is supposed to be so horrible he looks like a corpse so I didn’t get why the kid was scared of Ben Lewis but I forget that he’s not supposed to be that hot lmao, also PHANTOM CRY LIKE A BITCH, *comforting head grab*. Christine out here being a dumbass, HE TOLD YOU TO LEAVE seriously just go! But no Christine has to let his music be heard.

Okay I like that Madame Gerie is getting more stuff to do but I don’t get how “everything” will go to Gustav. Didnt she hear that they leaving? I don’t get it.

OKAY okay I’m dying laughing as it’s apparently almost morning in this bar, then “the morning shift” comes in AND SO DOES THIS CHIPPER FUCK WHO JUST TIPS HIS HAT AND STRUTS IN. I really don’t like Raoul’s “I’ve always been empty and dark, etc.” Like, come on bro, not true. Suddenly it’s dawn after his wallowing song, and in comes Meg and HOLY SHIT JUST KISS.

“I’m not afraid of him!” 🙃😨 I loved that moment. Devil Take the Hindmost is 3rd place for best songs, it really shows off...sorry I’m distracted by Ben Lewis’ tall slender figure AHEM instead of straight up fighting it shows off Raoul’s cowardice and basic bitchness “You’re ugly” whirl the Phantom out here like “Are you sure the kid’s yours and OH YEAH IM A MURDERER” like his insults are written to cut on a deeper level. Okay I see now, the Phantom wants to keep Christine and the boy of course, but he knows she intends to sing.

ExuSe Me? SWIM SUIT BOYS THROWING IT BACK??? Bathing Beauty is adorable but slowly making me realize I haven’t seen a single scene between her and the Phantom and this is making me question what her deal is with him. Also, just made me realize she has an American accent?? I wish it was more about Meg and the Phantom, I need to know more!

I like seeing Christine being silly. Okay “single red rose” line is weird. Ew Raoul crawling back just so he doesn’t lose. First time Raoul looks hot tho but it’s just another ploy dammit! I do like this direct choice though unlike the first one, despite what Raoul knows, Christine thinks there’s no danger and that she’s merely doing Eric one last favor. This leaves her mind pretty clear on what she wants without the pressure of death at least. Okay scratch that, the necklace being placed and then the Phantom guiding her head makes me think Lloyd is trying to imply the Phantom still has an almost psychic control over her. UGH THE REPRISE WITH BOTH THEIR VOICES THIS TIME UGGHGGGGGGGHHHHHH SO GOOD.

Who will keep an eye on this well dressed little French boy lmao. Again, did Meg and Eric shabang? Devil Take the Hindmost reprise is good but a little on the nose with Gustav’s part. I absolutely love that the stage is used as an in universe stage btw, especially during Love Never Dies. Those earrings don’t go with that necklace hon. God I love this song and the message but only in this context! I can’t listen to it outside this musical! Does anyone else get the feeling that she’s singing to Raoul in the context that yes she’s singing for the Phantom but she’s choosing to stay with Raoul??? Especially from that reaction of discomfort when he grabs her. Like they’re my OTP here but she doesn’t seem decided honestly despite it being obviously implied by the kiss.

I like seeing the Phantom freak out about Gustav tbh. It seems like honest care and worry not peacocking or triumphing over winning Christine from Raoul. The kidnapping just makes Meg’s story seem more weird because why kidnap the boy if she’s not going to hurt him??? Not saying this whole confrontation is fucked up and I feel her pain, I just don’t feel like I know everything. THEN FUCK! What a bullshit way to die. Would you trust this man with your child, honestly! That awkward shimmy he has to do to get closer tho 😂 THE EW FACE ERIC DOES AS HE LEAVES AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 THE REAL TEARS THE SON ACKNOWLEDGING THE FATHER awkward face touch END.

Overall, beautiful disaster piece with great music that I’m glad exists even though it shouldn’t!

#love never dies #the phantom of the opera #christine daae #raoul de chagny #Ben Lewis #madame giry #andrew lloyd webber #musical

18 notes · View notes

infinitelytheheartexpands · 4 years

Note

as we are exchanging asks, something you asked me once: 10 favorite characters from 10 different operas and what you like about them?

an extremely delayed response, all apologies, and also it’s past midnight right now so perhaps I should be sleeping and I’ll try to keep this somewhat short (and probably fail), but anyway, to answer your question:

1. Don Carlo(s): I love just about everyone in this opera (except you, Grand Inquisitor. you can go die) but if I had to choose one, I’d go with the absolute icon that is Princess Éboli. The thing I love about her most, I think, is how wonderfully complicated and real she is. I mean, she loves life, she’s a fierce badass, she does some horrible things for...lots of different reasons, but she does her absolute best to set things right again. In short, an extremely relatable, amazing, gorgeous Disaster Bi. Also: Verdi mezzo, so epic-as-hell music.

2. La traviata: Violetta Valéry. She doesn’t have much in the way of competition within her opera, but I’m still putting her on here because she’s one of my favorite characters in anything ever, and one of the first fictional ladies on whom I developed a hardcore crush. Something people forget about courtesans is that they were more than just...sex objects. They were smart ladies who oftentimes set the pace for upper-class life even as they were privately scorned for their position. And Marie Duplessis (on whom Violetta is based) is pretty much your ultimate rags-to-riches story (although we know how it ultimately ends). So Violetta goes from having nothing to teaching herself the ways of the world, climbs to the top of Parisian society, then decides she wants to give it all up for true love and fulfillment. While she didn’t choose the right guy IMO, she’s incredibly brave and bold and sensitive and she cares so much about everyone and she gives up her happiness so many times and I can’t and I love her so much and also her music is amazing and excuse me while I go cry. Also I need to make these shorter.

3. Simon Boccanegra: There’s my boy, Simon! One: I am a sucker for Good Baritones. Two: I am particularly a sucker for Good or Good-at-Heart Tormented Verdi Baritones. Three: THIS GUY. All he wants is to have peace and be with his family. That’s it. He’s so good and kind and amazing but also he is taking exactly no one’s BS (just listen to that Council Chamber scene!). He takes a position he didn’t want in the hope that he’ll be able to win Maria, but then she dies, but then he still uses his position to try to reconcile the factions anyway (and surprisingly enough, he’s pretty successful?). And him as a dad MY HEART.

4. Falstaff: Alice Ford, aka area 15th-century mistress of the house who has the mind of a 21st-century woman and is absolutely iconic for it. She’s incredibly smart and funny and clever and such a sweet person and great mom. She takes no one’s crap whatsoever and she outsmarts both Ford and Falstaff at every turn. She’s the ultimate ‘girls supporting girls’ lady and she gives the middle finger to the concepts of women just being good for being men’s playthings and of arranged marriage. And she knows how to have fun with it all. My one complaint: VERDI WHAT WERE YOU THINKING NOT GIVING HER A BADASS ARIA. That’s all.

5. Carmen: Carmen, my first love...I fell in love with her Habañera and her sheer confidence when I was 7 (and not realizing what it was about, may or may not have attempted to sing it on the playground at school, much to everyone’s confusion, but that’s a story for another time) and I’ve loved her since. I love her freedom, her huge self-confidence, her devil-may-care attitude, and every last note of her music. I just love her as a person. And of course, the iconic ‘‘Free was I born, and free I will die!” That right there is a life motto.

6. Eugene Onegin: My fellow book-loving, perpetually-dreaming nerd Tatyana Larina. Of course, I love her because of how sheerly relatable she is but there are so many other reasons as well. Like her and her sister’s dynamic. And the way she grows up and matures. And the way she’s not afraid to set some damn boundaries with Onegin, indeed, tell him no. That’s a strong girl right there, and while I wish she’d been able to get Onegin and true happiness...I’m not sure a relationship with Onegin would’ve worked out, and I’m proud of her for realizing that such a relationship (and perpetually fantasizing about it) could be extremely unhealthy and moving on. And oh God, her music. Especially the letter scene, which is every writer on an inspiration binge. And the final scene. Anyway.

7. Guillaume Tell: This is another ‘I love just about all the characters in this opera but welp I have to choose just one’ opera, and my choice is Guillaume Tell himself. First off: see #4. Second off: He’s just??? such an incredible person in every way like how is it possible to be that great of a human being??? He’s brave, he sticks up for what he believes in, he’s always willing to give others a helping hand, he’s super-enthusiastic, he’s a great husband/dad/friend, he’ll do anything for the people he cares about, he will readily call those who need it out on their BS...anyway we STAN him on this blog. Also, Rossini. And that incredibly gorgeous aria ‘Sois immobile’. I die.

8. Les Huguenots: Yet another grand opéra where I love the vast majority of the characters, and while I am 99% sure you already know the answer to this, I’ll say it again: it’s the only, the only Valentine de Saint-Bris, who just so happens to be incredibly amazing. She’s so...real and expressive and she’s someone I just personally feel like I get, like I see a little (okay more than that) of myself in her because of how real and relatable she is (I wrote a few posts a while back about why I headcanon that she has a severe undiagnosed anxiety disorder, which was...a major part of the story of my life for a while and to a lesser extent still is, but I digress) and also how amazing of a person she is. She’s not willing to just sit idly by while the world around her falls apart and the people she loves turn on each other (and eventually her). She’s one of the few people on either side of the aisle who’s like ‘this whole religious war thing is stupid and y’all need to stop’ and when things go from bad to worse, she puts herself out there in the middle of it all to save the people she cares about most (oh, also, remember how she just. stormed into the royal palace, demanded an interview with the Queen Mother, got it, and then used said interview to get a way to save Raoul and Marcel? yeah me too), and then when that fails, she literally renounces her own faith rather than belong to a religion that is committing actual crimes against humanity. and while she still fights to the bitter end, she still believes there’s a way to redemption for everyone and forgives her dad and JUST...I die. Also her music’s great but like. I love her mostly for her story.

9. Benvenuto Cellini: I am falling in love with this opera and literally all of its characters more and more every day, but my favorite character is probably Benvenuto Cellini himself, who is a) one of the few Not-Dumb tenors in opera and b) is a (mostly) Good Tenor. He loves life, he loves his art, he loves Teresa, and there are so many times where he is just such a Mood (see pretty much his entire second-act aria). Also, dude is GUTSY as hell. I mean, he literally gets the Pope to give him...pretty much everything he wants in exchange for the statue. That right there is an iconic moment. I don’t have a whole lot else to say about the character because it’s still kind of a new opera to me, but anyway he’s super-cool and I love him.

10. Les contes d’Hoffmann: Nicklausse! (Also his incarnation as the Muse, but mostly Nicklausse) He gets some of the best music in the whole thing (the Violin Aria anyone? or the Barcarolle with Giulietta?) and also he’s one of my favorite trouser roles. He’s super-ambiguous— is he really Hoffmann’s buddy or is he actually secretly working for Lindorf or is he going back and forth or is he somehow trying to help Hoffmann through working with Lindorf??? But one thing’s for sure: he’s by turns funny, serious, caring, devious...and I love him all the time. And his Musely work...ugh, the Muse gets me every time. Also, I invariably picture Kate Lindsey in the Sher production and that is a LOOK.

That’s all, sorry about the wait, and here you go! ❤️

5 notes · View notes

beyond-the-mirror · 4 years

Text

Music of the Night (V x Reader)

Welcome back to another chapter of Music of the Night!

From this chapter and on, this fic will continue a bit kinda like the musical and the movie albeit with a few changes on the plot. This is an AU after all, one that mainly focuses on our dear and mysterious Phantom and his relation with the Reader.

Tagging @minteyeddemon and @thedyingmoon as a special thanks for believing in this idea since before I started writing it. Hope you enjoy!

…………

Chapter 4: An Angel Ready to Take Flight

- Two years later -

“This trophy from our saviors, from our saviors from the enslaving force of Rome!”

The conductor signaled to the orchestra the start of the opera Hannibal’s Overture. Right on time, a parade of actors and actresses entered the stage from the side, marching while backup singers among them continued with the song.

“With feasting and dancing and song, tonight in celebration, we greet the victorious throng, returned to bring salvation!”

The scene flowed beautifully, the gorgeous red dresses and attires that the performers were wearing looked stunning from Trish’s place near the first row of seats. Next, the backup dancers appeared on stage, their choreography signaling the triumphant entrance of the war general Hannibal.

“The trumpets of Carthage resound! Hear, Romans, now and tremble! Hark to our step on the ground! Hear the drums, Hannibal comes!”

The soldiers and ladies of the court stepped aside to reveal the arrival of the great general, played by main tenor Ubaldo Piangi.

“Sad to return to find the land we love threatened once more by Rome's far-reaching grasp-“

“Gentlemen, gentlemen…” Interrupting Piangi’s solo, the conductor nervously tapped the stand before him, stopping the music altogether. “Monsieur Lefevre, we are in the middle of a rehearsal right now.”

Lefevre had sauntered into the stage accompanied by three other men.

“I am terribly sorry Monsieur Reyer, it’s only for a quick announcement.” Lefevre excused himself before quickly clearing his throat “Monsieur Rever, Madame Trish, ladies and gentlemen. Please if I could have your attention thank you very much.”

Making a brief pause and waiting until everyone gathered round, Lefevre continued “As you know, in a few weeks I will be retiring, it has been a great pleasure for me working alongside an extraordinaire crew such as all of you. And now, it is my pleasure to introduce you to these two gentlemen who now own our Opera House, Monsieur Richard Firmin and Monsieur Gilles Andre.”

He gestured to two of the men who stood by his side. One of them, which you presumed was Monsieur Firmin, stepped to the front and took the word. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all. And we are deeply honoured to introduce our new patron, the Vicomte Raoul de Chagny.”

The third man in question was tall and with a lean figure, he had warm hazel eyes and curly blond hair. He was rather handsome and looked to be well-mannered considering his posture the entire time.

“My parents and I are honoured to support all the arts, especially Fortuna’s well renowned Opera House.”

“If you allow me Vicomte, gentlemen.” Lefevre interjected, beckoning Carlotta and Ubaldo. “Signora Carlotta Giudicelli, our current leading soprano; Signor Ubaldo Piangi, lead tenor of our fine Opera; and Monsieur Reyer, maestro in charge of our orchestra.”

“An honor Signor, Signora, Monsieur. I believe we are keeping you from your rehearsal. My apologies for the interruption everyone, you may continue with your duties.”

The three men retired to the side of the stage while Trish ordered to repeat the scene once more from the top. The premiere would be that same night and the last dress rehearsals must go according to the tight schedule programmed.

Lefevre invited the new administrators to stay and watch the performers first hand, soon enough Trish joined them so he could properly introduce her.

“Gentlemen, I proudly introduce you to Madame Trish. An unparalleled choreographer and dance captain that’s been gracing our beloved Opera for these last years.”

“An honor meeting you.” Trish responded politely before showing them the routine the dancers were currently practicing on stage. “As you can see, we take great pride in the excellence of our ballet. We primarily focus on the discipline of our ballerinas rather than their mere talent, in order to ensure the success of our productions.”

The three man observed attentively at how the scene before them took place, impressed at the incredible skills and professionalism all the staff members showed for their work.

“Now I see why madame, especially that exceptional beauty performing over there.” Unbeknownst to you, Firmin pointed towards your dancing figure.

“(Y/N) (L/N).” Trish informed him. “A very promising ballerina Monsieur, one of the best this theatre has ever witnessed. Now please follow me gentlemen, we don’t want to stand in our performers’ way.”

As they gave the performers the space they needed, Raoul centered his bright eyes on you. He was enthralled by the swift flow of your movements, as if the choreography was basically second nature to you. The scene continued with the rest of the actors marching to the center, followed by a mechanical prop of a magnanimous war elephant.

“The trumpeting elephant sound. Hear, Romans, now and tremble, hark to their step on the ground. Hear the drums! Hannibal comes!”

A glorious crescendo filled the Opera House before the scene reached its finale. Silence took over for a few moments before the new administrators and the Vicomte clapped at the great performance they had just witnessed, not registering Carlotta’s frustrated voice as she strode towards them.

“That number was astounding! We are very excited about tonight’s gala-“

“All day! All they ever want is the dancing!” Carlotta rudely interrupted Andre “Allor… I hope you are as excited about dancing girls as your new managers, BECAUSE I WILL NOT BE SINGING! Addio a tutti!”

She stomped furiously to her personal assistants, ordering them to gather all her belongings for her. Carlotta’s sudden departure left Firmin and Andre in absolute shock, while the rest of the staff were simply unfazed by her attitude, already used to this kind of meltdowns from her.

“What can we do now?” With no other options at hand, the new owners had no choice but to follow Lefevre’s advice to this particular kind of situation “Grovel. Grovel, grovel.”

So of course, Firmin and Andre immediately took after Carlotta to stop her from leaving the stage, loudly exclaiming any possible compliment they could think of in order to appeal to her.

“Beauty!” “Principessa!” “Bella Dama!”

“Si! Si! Si!”

“Oh Goddess of Song!”

“If you excuse me, please.” Everyone turned to see the Vicomte approaching Carlotta with a rather calm and suave expression on his face “Monsieur Reyer, isn’t there a marvelous aria for Elissa in Act. 3 of Hannibal? Perhaps the signora-“

“Yes, yes, but no!” she angrily interjected “Because turns out I don’t have the right costume for Act 3 because somebody made a horrible disaster out of it! And I hate my hat!” She sobbed and lamented, very much like a spoiled diva in the eyes of the staff members. Raoul, however, remained unfazed by her sudden outburst and simply smiled warmly at her.

“I was wondering, signora, as a personal favor… would you give us the privilege of a personal performance? Unless of course, Monsieur Reyer objects.”

“No, aspette! aspette!” Taking in deep breaths, Carlotta composed herself, the Vicomte’s words having their desired effect. “If my managers command, Monsieur Reyer?”

“If my diva commands?” Reyer spoke in a mirth voice to appeal to her, which made her beam in joy.

“Yes I do!”

Reyer quickly returned to his position at the head of the orchestra, the pianist preparing himself for Elissa’s aria. Taking hold of his baton, the conductor signaled Carlotta.

“Signora?”

Carlotta first applied some throat spray and readied herself before confirming. “Maestro.”

Elissa’s aria ‘Think of Me’ was indeed an exquisite piece, only the most privileged voices could ever properly bring forth all the emotions contained in its beautiful lyrics. Carlotta Giudicelli may be an insufferable diva in the eyes of those who worked with her, but there was no denying that she had a rather wonderful voice. The entire theatre fell silent as a sign of respect to her magnificent singing, no one dared to interrupt her, no one dared to disrespect La Carlotta in such way.

That is until a snapping sound made everyone’s hearts drop, and the next thing they all knew, a heavy curtain was falling down right towards her.

“Signora!”

Panicked screams resonated through the stage. Raoul managed to pull Carlotta right out of danger’s way, her ample dress, however, ultimately made them both topple down due to the weight of its many layers of fabric. Many rushed immediately to help both the Vicomte and mostly the lead soprano, who was trapped beneath the heavy curtain.

“Oi Buquet! What in heaven and hell happened over there?!” Nico screamed furiously at Mr. Buquet, the man in charge of operating the changing scenery at the fly floors. “You are lucky nobody got killed for this!”

“It wasn’t me Nico, I swear! I-I remained in my position all the time, Lord Sparda knows I wasn’t near that curtain.” Buquet stuttered nervously, the poor man fearing the possibility of losing his job over this accident.

Adjusting her glasses, Nico walked around trying to look if someone else had been up at the fly floors tampering at the ropes, but couldn’t find nobody.

“What are you talking about? There’s no one else there.”

“Do you think… it could have been the Phantom?” Buquet murmured almost inaudibly.

“Please Buquet, don’t be ridiculous! Seems that I’ll have to examine the grid, the least I want now is a broken pulley or something.” She was sure Buquet hadn’t been responsible for the incident, for everyone knew he was a very hardworking and trustworthy person. So the only possible explanations Nico could think about were either one of the pulleys got damaged and broke down, or the rope wasn’t secured properly.

Meanwhile, the situation on the stage wasn’t looking pleasant at all.

“We are deeply sorry for this signora, I’m sure this kind of stuff tends to happen from time to time.” Andre tried his best, and failed, to calm down a ver altered Carlotta.

“Two years! For two whole years this kind of stuff has been happening! And has anybody done something to stop them? NO! So until you manage to stop this incidents, I refuse to set a foot in this Opera!”

As she stomped out of the theatre followed by her hurrying assistants, everyone could feel in their hearts that unlike her previous outbursts, she was not coming back this time. And now the question lingering in their minds was: What were they going to do now?

…………

The performers were gathered at the green room, already out of their costumes and in casual attire instead. All staff members were told to leave the stage so Trish, Lefevre and the new owners could discuss on how to proceed and find an imminent solution as soon as possible.

“I’m afraid we’ll have to cancel.” Firmin lamented as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. “We have lost our main star and there’s no way we can find another soprano for tonight’s premiere.”

“Calm down Richard. There must be a substitute, an understudy-“

“Understudy? With all due respect Monsieur Andre, but there’s no understudy for La Carlotta!” interjected Reyer who was visibly nervous about this turn of events.

Tension and concern filled the entire Opera, and as much as the Vicomte and Trish tried their best to control the situation at hand, still no plausible solution had been found yet. Firmin and Andre were mainly worried about the imminent decision of returning all the earnings, the Opera was having a full house that night after all and that could mean a terrible economic loss for the company.

You were currently sitting on the floor hidden behind one of the side curtains of the stage. Curiosity had completely taken over you and now you were secretly trying to listen to the discussion taking place on the stage. You didn’t mean to eavesdrop so rudely, but you were terribly worried and couldn’t help it. All the efforts of your friends, of the people you now considered pretty much your family. If a substitute is not found by tonight, then it all would be in vain.

“My nightingale, my angel of music…” a familiar voice filled your ears “Why are you worried? What is filling your heart with sorrow?”

You could feel his presence right behind you, but you dared not look back out of respect. The Phantom always kept his identity a secret, the least you could do to repay everything he taught you, was respecting his decision not to be seen.

“Our lead soprano is gone… if we don’t find someone, anyone, then…” you trailed off, fighting to keep your tears from falling. “Everyone has worked so hard for this production, I don’t want their efforts to be in vain…”

He remained silent.

A warm breath grazed your ear, making shivers run down your spine.

“I believe you are ready then…”

“Phantom? …What do you mean?”

“… I believe in you, my angel. Go forth, and bless the world with your divine voice.”

The presence behind you was gone.

“Phantom? Wait!” You turned around, but he was already gone.

Did he mean…? No, there was no way you could do this. You may have improved a lot since your first lesson with him, but were you truly ready to perform before a real audience? A full house? What if you get the lyrics wrong? What if you get nervous and stutter during a musical number? No, you couldn’t do this.

But the Phantom… he believed in you. The Opera, your friends… they needed you.

… Your father… he… he always believed in you.

Taking a deep breath, you slowly got on your feet.

…………

“Please excuse me everyone.”

Eyes turned to you, the discussion coming to a pause.

“(Y/N) is something wrong? You look worried about something.” Trish walked to you, concerned after noticing the few tears in the corner of your eyes which you quickly wiped away.

“Please, allow me to do it.” the words came out of your lips in an almost inaudible whisper.

The others on the stage looked at each other in confusion. “Miss, you don’t mean…”

There was no turning back. With great strength in your eyes, you voiced your request with confidence. “If it’s not too much of a bother, please allow me to play as Elissa.”

Everyone’s eyes widened in surprise. Andre turned to Firmin “But she’s just a dancer, there’s no way she can do it.”

“(Y/N) do you have any idea of what this entails?” Trish was looking at you incredulously, genuine concern in her eyes. “This is the main role we are talking about, not just anybody can perform it correctly.”

“I know the choreography as well as the lyrics. I can assure you I’ll be able to do it.”

With a sigh leaving her lungs, Trish turned to Reyer. “Maestro would you kindly call your pianist over? Allow her to sing the Act. 3 aria and we shall see if she’s fit for the role.”

“Right away, Madame.”

As the pianist rushed to the orchestra pit, the Vicomte beckoned you to the front of the stage.

“Over here Miss, don’t be shy. For the moment let’s just hear the beginning of the aria, understood?”

You nodded. As Reyer and the pianist got ready, you closed your eyes and remembered the faith your family always had in you, your father’s words, and the teachings of the Phantom.

And so, the first notes to the aria sounded.

“Think of me, think of me fondly

When we've said goodbye

Remember me, once in a while

Please promise me you'll try

When you find that once again you long

To take your heart back and be free

If you ever find a moment

Spare a thought for me.”

Silence.

“M-Magnifique! Absolutely magnificent!”

With wide eyes and clapping hands, you were congratulated by the everyone in front of you.

“(Y/N) that was wonderful!” Trish added in utter surprise “Now why hadn’t you mentioned you could sing like that before, darling?”

“To be honest, I’ve never sung professionally before. But I’ve been receiving lessons for a while and seeing our current predicament well… I decided to at least give it a try.”

“And what an extraordinaire performance that was.” Raoul walked to you and joined Trish at her side. “Miss (Y/N), due to our current circumstances and your impressive demonstration, we are proud to inform you that you may play Elissa in tonight’s premiere. We believe you will be able to deliver a breathtaking performance tonight.”

You could feel your eyes water again at their words. All those days you practiced, they were finally bearing fruit.

“Then I promise I won’t fail you.”

Trish gave you a warm smile. “Alright then, the show must go on and there’s no time to lose. Come (Y/N), we must rehearse your lines and musical numbers.”

A shadowed figure in the long abandoned Box Four smiled down at what was happening on stage before retreating. After all, the Phantom had a very important gala to attend that night, and there was no way he would miss his beloved angel performing on her debut.

…………

As Nico finally reached the grid high above the stage, she took out her flashlight and started inspecting the pulley of the fallen curtain. To her surprise, however, the device was in top-notch condition. Nothing broken, rusty or unstable

“Huh? Well that’s weird.” She had also previously checked the rope. It had no signs to have been cut or damaged either, so the only logical explanation left was that whoever was in charge of tying and securing the ropes made a terrible job, either that or… someone untied it and let the curtain fall on purpose. Then again, she couldn’t find anyone else on the fly floors other than Buquet, and he was too far away to have done it.

“Argh… I’ve already told them over and over again to check their damn ropes.” She muttered to herself before getting out of the grid.

…………

After one last conversation with Firmin and Andre, Lefevre decided to retire for the day. However, there was something else he had to take care to before leaving the building. He reached for the inner pocket of his coat, pulling a sealed black envelope with no name or address written on it, its only prominent characteristic was a lilac wax seal on the back.

Lefevre stared at the envelope for a few moments before putting it back in his pocket and proceeding with his task. Entering the green room, he spotted Trish and (Y/N) going over Elissa’s lines.

“Excuse me Madame Trish, may I talk to you for a few seconds. I’m afraid it’s a very important matter.”

She stood up and after instructing (Y/N) to keep practicing her lines, she followed him out of the room.

“What happened Monsieur Lefevre? Did something happen?”

He gulped audibly before answering. “Trish. You have worked in this theatre for a couple of years now, enough for me to realize how valuable and loyal you are for the company that I basically nurtured for most of my life. Which is why I trust you fully to complete the task that I’m about to give you. Please listen carefully what I’m about to tell you, and please, promise me you’ll handle this with complete and absolute discretion.”

Lefevre reached for his inner pocket once again and handed her the mysterious black envelope.

“I’m afraid I don’t understand Monsieur. What is inside this letter?” She inquired worryingly.

Lefevre inhaled deeply before continuing in a whispered voice “Inside this envelope there are exactly 1,800 euros. At the end of every month, you must place that exact amount of euros in a black envelope like this one. I keep them in the third drawer of my desk, as well as some lilac sealing wax and a seal stamp with a design like the one in this envelope. Then, you must take the money to Box Four and slide it under the curtain. That box must remain unavailable for the public always. It is imperative that nobody, absolutely nobody, sees you when delivering the money.”

“What? But who is this money for?”

Sweat started forming on Lefevre’s forehead, and when he remained quiet, it only worsened Trish’s concerns.

“Just… promise me that you will do it. And please… don’t ask anymore questions to me or anybody else.”

She hesitated. She had no idea of what was it that got Lefevre so nervous, and then there was the fact that he was willing to pay an unknown person such an important amount of money every month.

There was something quite sketchy behind all of this. And yet, she somehow trusted Lefevre.

“Fine… I just hope this won’t get me in any trouble in the future.”

“Don’t worry, I promise you this is the only thing you have to do. Thanks for everything Madame Trish.”

And with those words, Lefevre left the Opera.

Trish examined the envelope in her hands and turned it around. Her eyes centered on the mysterious lilac wax seal, or more importantly, the peculiar design of the stamp.

A single yet elegant ‘V’ decorating its center.

#devil may cry #phantom of the opera au #dmc v #v x reader #v x you #self-insert #fanfiction #fanfic

18 notes · View notes

centrally-unplanned · 4 years

Text

The Phantom of the Opera Movie: How (not) to Adapt Your Fanfic to Stage & Screen

I recently watched the infamously-maligned trainwreck that is the 2004 Phantom of the Opera film adaptation of the stage musical, which lived up to its reputation! Rehashing the atrocious casting of literally-sang-for-the-first-time-two-weeks-before-filming-Music-of-the-Night Gerard Butler as the Phantom is well-trod territory, but I don't think that is the real crux of the film's failings. Instead, I think it serves as a quintessential example of the failure to transition from stage to screen - and how lucky the stage adaptation was.

For the "PotO" uninitiated, despite the endless shipping the titular Phantom and the female deuteragonist Christine do not have a romantic relationship. Oh the Phantom is trying to get down with that, for sure, but she sees him as either a ghost, an angel, or a terrorist at various points, never a credible love interest. In the original novel this is extremely explicit, and it is actually preserved in the stage adaptation - though as you realize with this film not intentionally.

In a stage musical, audiences don't really "suspend disbelief" the way they do for something like movies. There is one or more human beings, right in front of them, being real people in a wooden box with minimalist decour - the artifice is inescapable. Which is fine, actually! Instead of being immersed in the worldbuilding the audience can appreciate the craft of it all, the acting chops of the leads and the high notes they hit and the cool set designs around them. As such strong plots for musicals aren't really required; details are skipped over in exchange for focusing on other aesthetic elements. More importantly for our purposes, in a musical like Phantom of the Opera the audience isn't set up to expect a tight directorial vision, with instead the characters being the a product of the choices of the actors themselves - people even look out for the different interpretations different leads will bring to the same script. Each performance is itself an adaptation.

This lack of verisimilitude does wonders for the musical version of Phantom of the Opera. Honestly, plot-wise and arc-wise? Phantom of the Opera isn’t that great. Christine, one of the supposed leads, has no motivation for like 90% of run-time, instead being buffeted about by the whims of other, more powerful characters (just like early 20th century France ooooh, eat it Leroux), and Raoul, her earnest, wealthy suitor-cum-fiance, is the dried cement of love interests with no arc to speak of. Lots of plot elements are covered quickly and left vague as to their meaning. But really, who cares? You get to watch a tortured, corrupted genius offer a panoply of shadowed delights to a beautiful ingenue in a rock-opera baritone, and Rage Against The System so hard when spurned they drop a God-damn chandelier on the stage - that’s really all you need!

In the stage musical there is often - lets be honest very often - sexual subtext between the Phantom and Christine. But that is the choice of the actors, it's not in the script, it stays subtext. You are there to watch those actors put their spin on it and take it to the limit - let them have fun with the material! On stage it serves a great metaphorical function; to be tempted by music, by the mystery of darkness, has been metaphorical sex for so long it needs no more explication.

Now, however, we loop back to the movie adaption, with two key points to establish. First, movies do not work like musicals. There is no live person in front of you, every shot is the product of a dozen takes and as many hours of editing choices, and as a viewer you are dragged along lockstep seeing the results of these choices. All of this is in the service of building a cohesive vision that allows the audience to fully suspend disbelief. The price for this immersion is that now every moment of the film is imbued with intent. Everything has to be there for a reason, the way things in reality are - or more accurately the way we want reality to be. To quote Best Girl Mizusaki:

(Just when you thought I was going to write a media essay without being a huge weeb for once, huh?)

What's true for animation is almost as true for film, all of which means that how characters act is no longer an actor on stage doing their spin but the cohesive narrative of a story.

Second, the movie takes all of that fanshipping sexual subtext and cranks it all the way up the nosebleed seats, while changing none of the relevant plot points. In fact, it adds plot details to strip away the musical’s ambiguity! One of Christine's opening scenes, only briefly touched on in the stage musical, explains cleanly that she considers the Phantom the angel of her dead father come down to protect and guide her. Later in the show, as the Phantom's villainy becomes more apparent, when propositioned by Raoul her only objection is to how the Phantom might hurt her if he found out. Well after all of his temptations, rage, and villainy, near the climax of the film, she still sings in a graveyard about her uncertainty over whether or not he is a literal ghost or spirit of her father. So the plot structure is preserved and explicit - Christine is drawn to him due to his musical talent and offerings of instruction, is unsure if he is even human, but realizes his corporeality, villainy, and fundamental pitiable humanity at the end. Raoul throughout is her explicit, engaged-to-be-married romantic partner.

So then why are her and the Phantom fucking??

Seriously, I cannot undersell how sexual their scenes are.They are all over each other, fingers gliding over skin, and the next scene after this one is her in his bed with sex-hair all over the place! This subtext is continued in every scene they have together, long after he has been revealed as a murderer. At one point he confronts her in public, with her fiance watching, and it's still played like he is the Tuxedo Mask to her Sailor Moon. Even the scene where she takes off his mask is shot like it was foreplay-gone-wrong, and the Phantom just forgets to say his safeword in time (This is why you pre-negotiate about your kinks, all!).

Any movie-goer understands what the intent of scenes like these are, why a director would choose these actions & shots; they want us to know that they are getting busy off camera, even if only by implication. We know they don't actually do that because there is a book to refer back to but damn does this movie want us to forget that...in these scenes. Which is the problem, of course - the rest of the movie operates as normal! In the above scene Christine thinks the Phantom is, again I must emphasize this, the ghost of her father; apparently she is going for the reverse-Oedipus achievement but no one told the rest of the script. Is she lying to Raoul about her love and her reasons? Is she actually tempted? Stop telling me you are unlovable via haunted monologues Gerard Butler, you look like testosterone on a stick and y'all boned literally five minutes ago, I am not buying it!

The subtext and the text are at war with each other - and given that, as we established, the dynamic between the Phantom & Christine is really the only interesting part about this story, strip that down to a muddled mess and you really have nothing left. And in a movie, subtext like this is just another form of text - the director chose these shots, it's intended. Beyond the terrible vocal performances and sometimes baffling shot direction, the movie's biggest failing is this schizophrenic mismatch between the script and the actions on screen which is a problem the stage musical honestly didn't have to worry about. These scenes are not set up like this, and the ability to add subtext by the actors is just fundamentally limited by the medium; it cannot touch the story itself, which isn't even the focus of the audiences. Even if these contradictions did exist more in the stage musical, they wouldn't doom it due to the nature of said medium.

Which is very, very fortunate, because there is one final point to make - Andrew Lloyd Weber, the creator of the stage musical, wholeheartedly approved of this direction for the movie. He produced the film, wrote the screenplay, chose the director, the works - this is his film. And, as is apparently from interviews and a...not fondly remembered stage sequel to the musical that he wrote, he ships the Phantom and Christine hard. Not in the "oh I love their dynamic on screen way", but in the Ao3 sort-by-fetish-tags "they are my Trash'' way. And I would never begrudge a man his ships, but apparently he was not content to keep it away from the canon. He absolutely reads the stage musical this way as well! It's just one of those interesting ironies of life - one of the most successful adaptations of a book to a stage musical was made by someone who, in my opinion, did not grasp the fundamentals of the story he was adapting. We just didn't notice because the medium didn't care, and also damn can he write a score that slaps.

I would not be the first person to say that this movie for Andrew Lloyd Weber is something of a George Lucas moment for him, a creator completely missing the appeal of his own work; but after seeing it the comparison rang deeply true. The Phantom of the Opera movie is truly the Phantom Menace of musicals.

No, I don't feel bad for that last line, why do you ask?

#I had to edit the Eizouken screenshot because the subtitles appeared at an awkward moment #So I just took a adjoining frame that looked much cleaner and had a better pose and re-inserted the subtitles #I def went way too far for a random Eizouken reference - anything for the Brand I guess!#poto #phantom of the opera #media essays

1 note · View note

all-things-are-nothing-to-me · 5 years

Text

Insurgent Ferocity: The Playful Violence of Rebellion

“We don’t just talk about violence; it is our element, our everyday fate...the conditions we are forced to live in...”

Os Cangacieros

Social control is impossible without violence. Society produces systems of rationaized violence to socialize individuals — to make them into useful resources for society, while some of these systems, such as the military, the plolice and the penal system can still be viewed separately due to the blatant harshness of their violence, for the most part these systems have become so interconnected and so pervasive that they act as a single totality — the totality which is the society in which we live.

This systemic violence exists mostly as a constant underlying threat — a subtle, even boring, everyday terrorism which incuces a fear of stepping out of line. The signs and orders from “superiors” which threaten us with punishment or poverty, the armed, uniformed thugs who are there to “protect and serve” (huh!?!), the barrage of headlines about wars, torture, serial killers and streeet gangs, all immerse us in an atmosphere of subtle, underlying, rationalized social violence which causes us to fear and repress our own violent passions.

In light of the systematic social violence that surrounds us, it’s no surprise that people are fooled into viewing all violence as a single, monolithic entity rather than as specific acts or ways of relating. The system of violence produced by society does become a monolith which acts to perpetuate itself.

In reaction to this monolithic system of violence, the “pathology of pacifism” develops. Unable to see beyond social catagories, the pacifist creates a false dichotomy, limiting the question of violence to the ethical/intellectual choice between as acceptance of violence as a monolithic system or the total rejection of violence. But this choice exists only in the realm of worthless abstactions, because in the world in which we actually live, pacifism and systematic violence depend upon each other. Pacifism is an ideaology which demands total social peace as its ultimate goal. But total social peace would require the complete suppression of the individual passions that create individual incidences of violence — and that would require total social control. Total social control is only possible through the use of the constant threat of the police, prison, therapy, social censure, scarcity or war. So the pacifist ideal requires a monolithic system of violence and reflects the social contradiction inherent in the necessity that authority strive to maintain peace in order to maintain a smoothly running social system, but can only do so by maintaining a rationalized system of violence.

The rational system of violence not only perpetuates itself, but also evokes responses, often in the form of blind lashings out by enraged individuals, which the system then manipulates into justifications for its own continual existence, and occasionally in the form of consciously rebellious violence. The passionate violence that is suppressed turns in on the one feeling it, becoming the the slow-killing, underlying violence of stress and anxiety. It is evident in the millions of little pinpricks of humiliation that pass between people on the streets and in the public places of every city — looks of disgust and hostility between strangers, and the verbal battle of wits exchanging guilt and blame between supposed friends. This is the subtlest and most total form of rationalised violence; everyone conforms out of fear of each others’ disgust. This is the subtle form of violence practiced by pacifists.

“I do not dream of a gentle revolution. My passion runs to the violence of supersession, the ferocity of a life that renounces nothing.” —Raoul Vaneigem

Those of us who are fighting for the freedom to create our lives for ourselves need to reject both sides of the choice society offers between pacifism and systematic violence, because this choice is an attempt to socialize our rebellion. Instead we can create our own options, developing a playful and passionate chaos of action and relating which may express itself at times with intense and ferocious violence, at times with the gentlest tenderness, or whatever way our passions and whims move us in the particular moment. Both the rejection of violence and the systemization of violence are an attack on our passions and uniqueness.

Violence is an aspect of animal interaction and observation of violence among animals belies several generalizations. Violence among animals does not fit into the formula of social darwinism; there is no perpetual war of all against all. Rather at specific moments under particular circumstances, individual acts of violence flare up and then fade when the moments pass. There is no systematic violence in the wild, but, instead, momentary expressions of specific passions. This exposes one of the major fallacies of pacifist ideology. Violence, in itself, does not perpetuate violence. The social system of rationalized violence, of which pacifism is an integral part, perpetuates itself as a system.

Against the system of violence, a non-systematized, passionate, playful violence is the appropriate response. Violent play is very common among animals and children. Chasing, wrestling and pouncing upon a playmate, breaking, smashing and tearing apart things are all aspects of play that is free of rules. The conscious insurgent plays this way as well, but with real targets and with the intention of causing real damage. The targets of this ferocious play in the present society would mainly be institutions, commodities, social roles and cultural icons, but the human representatives of these institutions can also be targets — especially where they present an immediate threat to anyone’s freedom to create their life as they desire.

Rebellion has never been merely a matter of self-defense. In itself, self-defense is probably best achieved by accepting the status quo of its reform. Rebellion is the aggressive, dangerous, playful attack by free-spirited individuals against society. Refusing a system of violence, refusing an organized, militarized form of armed struggle, allows the violence of insurgents to retain a high level of invisibility. It cannot be readily understood by the authorities and brought under their control. Its insurgent nature may even go undetected by the authorities as it eats away at the foundations of social control. From the rationalized perspective of authority, this playful violence will often appear utterly random, but actually is in harmony with the desires of the insurgent. This playful violence of rebellion kills “inadvertently as (one) strides out happily without looking back.”

The playful violence of insurgence has no room for regret. Regret weakens the force of blows and makes us cautious and timid. But regret only comes in when violence is dealt with as a moral question, and for insurgents who are fighting for the freedom to live their desires; morality is just another form of social control. Wherever rebel violence has manifested playfully, regret seems absurd. In riots (other than police riots) and spontaneous uprisings — as well as in small-scale vandalism — a festive attitude seems to be evident. There is an intense joy, even euphoria, in the release of violent passions that have been pent up for so long. Bashing in the skull of society as we experience it on a daily basis is an intense pleasure, and one to be savored, not repudiated in shame, guilt or regret. Some may object that such an attitude could cause our violence to get out of hand, but an excess of insurgent violence is not something that we need to fear. As we break down our repression and begin to free our passions, certainly our gestures, our actions and our entire way of being are bound to become increasingly expansive and all we do we will seem to do to excess. our generosity will seem excessive and our violence will seem excessive. Unrepressed, expansive individuals squander in all things. Riots and insurrections have failed to get beyond temporary release, not because of excess, but because people hold themselves back. People have not trusted their passions. They have feared the expansiveness, the squandering excess of their own dreams and desires. So they have given up or turned their fight over to new authorities, new systemizers of violence. But how can insurgent violence ever be truly excessive when there is no institution of social control, no aspect of authority, no icon of culture that should not be smashed to powder — and that geefully?

If what we want is a world in which each of us can create our own lives free of constraints, relating with each other as we desire rather than in accordance with socially defined roles, we have to recognize that, at times, violence will flare and that there is nothing wrong with that. Fullness of the passions includes full and expansive expressions of hatred and rage — and these are violent emotions. Though this violence can be used tactically it will not be systematic. Though it can be intelligent, it will not be rationalized. And under no circumstances is it self-perpetuating, because it is individual and temporary, spending itself fully in its free, passionate expression. Neither moralistic non-violence nor the systematic violence of military struggle can break down authority since both require some form of authority. Only the expansive and passionate violence of insurgent individuals playing alone or with each other has any chance of destroying this society...

Forward everyone!

And with arms and hearts,

Speech and pen, Dagger and rifle,

Irony and blasphemy,

Theft, poisoning and fire,

Let us make...war on society.

-- Dejaque

#feral faun #anti civ #attack #nihilism #non violence #pacifism #post left #violence #anarchy a journal of desire armed

5 notes · View notes

elsa-muhlheim-skywalker · 5 years

Text

LND: I almost forget how much I hate the plot.

Wow I almost forget how sexist is the whole plot of Love Never Dies because I only listen the songs that I like without care about the plot. The whole romance between the Phantom and Christine, is not only abusive and toxic, but the writers left Christine without tell or singer how she felt in the show because this will had destroyed the fabricated romance.

In “Devil Take the Hindmost”, Phantom and Raoul treat Christine (and Gustave) like object that belong to them or not, she must “choice” between them, ignoring that they already take the choice for her: Christine in the original London plot and less abusive that Australian version, wants sings because she loves the music; but don’t wanted stay with the Phantom, this is cleary and “Phantom Confronts Christine”, she say “and then we go”. Phantom, showing that don’t learn nothing with the original, is manipulative and possessive again, invented that if she sings meaning that she loves him. Of course that Christine don’t give up of the perfomance, and that is supposed to “prove” that she loves the Phantom and not that she is being manipulated for him again?

That’s why she is upset with the Raoul letter in “Ah Christine!”, they are a family with problem but they cleary still love each other. ALW and Ben Elton know this, that’s why they go quickly to “Gustave! Gustave!”. The show ends and we don’t know how Christine felt, the reprise of Once Upon Another Time is so ridiculous because made this about the Phantom... again, is her death but is not really about her, is about giving this jerk man a award, and a bittersweet end to the melodrama.

“Love Never Dies” was written by the Phantom like something that he wishes ear from her, because if Christine tell what she felt for her own words, this garbage plot, collapses. This only shows how fragile is the plot of LND. I love Erik, like the great character that he is in Leroux's book and in the Webber first musical, Love Never Dies destroyed his redemption. At least gived us the best Llyod Webber score since Whistle Down the Wind? Ah Webber, don't could be for a better plot?

#poto #love never dies #alw #lnd #erik #christine #raoul

3 notes · View notes

margridarnauds · 5 years

Note

6, 12, 23, and 45 please!

Thank you!

6. List your OTP from each fandom you’ve been involved in.

So, I have no idea what we’re talking about as far as levels of involvement, but here are the ones I read fanfic RELIGIOUSLY for back in the day. So, behold my shame.

Cats (oh, my sweet, innocent 12 year old self) - Mistoffelees/Victoria.

Phantom of the Opera - Raoul/Christine/Erik, tbh. I started off E/C, then shifted to R/C when I realized E was a trashfire, then went to R/C/E when I realized that I loved garbage after all.

Van Helsing - Anna/Dracula. Which is impressive given I’ve never. Actually. Watched it. Sue me.

Carmilla - Carmilla/Laura.

The Pirate Queen - Graínne/Donal, one of the first fics I ever wrote. (And then never published.) Yes, he is a garbage fire in the musical, but in my very specific rewrite of it, he wasn’t. Though these days, I kind of lean towards Tiernan/Donal or Tiernan/Gráinne/Donal. Garbage pirate OT3 is garbage.

Dracula - The Countess (from Makt Myrkanna)/Lucy Westenra. The first explicit femslash I ever wrote, and it might very well never see the light of day because I do not forever want to be known as The One With The Blood And The Lesbians. Though, who knows? It might cleanse me of Printing Press.

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (Yes. Really.): Twilight/Princess Luna. I keep telling myself that my AO3 profile’s eventually going to be nothing but period dramas, my (1) Terra Nova fic, and…a My Little Pony fic, along with various Barbie Movie fics. For old time’s sake.

Terra Nova - Wash/Mira, due to @janetcarter‘s influence.

The Flash - Barrison. Specifically, Eobard/Barry. In many ways, it was my prep for 1789 with the whole “I murdered your parent” thing.

The Avengers - Loki/Tony Stark.

Les Miserables - Valjean/Javert

The Golden Compass - Mrs. Coulter/Lord Asriel

Arthuriana - Galahad/Mordred

Star Wars - Reylo or Finnlo. I don’t particularly have a preference, just let Kylo screw one of his various archnemeses straight to the side of the Light.

Star Wars: Rebels - Kallus/Zeb. Oh. Another enemies to lovers ship. Who would have guessed?

1789 - Peyrol/Ronan (Was there any doubt? If there was, I need to write more.)

Revolutionary Maximilien Robespierre - Madame Roland/Marie-Anne. In progress, but A Ship for me. Mainly because I’m a contrarian little shit who writes things when people tell me I can’t and then gets attached to the result.

Brennus, Enemy of Rome - Ahmet/Nissia. Which…I still need to. Write. My fanfic for that one. So that fanfic for it exists.

Lord of the Rings - Boromir/Aragorn

Friedrich: Mythos und Tragödie - Countess Orzelska/Wilhelmine and Fritz/Katte. Pretty much equally, though Orzelskine (?) Wilhelska (?) is starting to edge out Fratte.

La Legende du Roi Arthur - Leia/Guinevere in the French and Morgane/Guin in the Takarazuka.

Irish Mythology - Bres/Sreng. I will defend this one to the death and I will do it with citations and footnotes.

Scarecrow of Romney Marsh - General Pugh/Dr Syn. Yet another one I. Need to write the fic for.

Star Trek: ……..

………You know, my favorite thing about Star Trek is that, regardless of shipping preferences, we can all find something to enjoy. Kor/Kirk. While I can’t speak for DS9 Quark/Brunt, my current favorite from Discovery has to be Michael/Tilly, which might very well be the single most wholesome thing I’ve shipped in a very long time.

Ace Attorney: Phoenix/Edgeworth.

12. Who is your current OT3?

Chauvelin/Percy/Marguerite from The Scarlet Pimpernel. I do not accept constructive criticism on this one. Because Percy/Marguerite are sickeningly sweet on their own, Marguerite/Chauvelin has That Sexual Tension in Where’s the Girl and The Riddle, and Percy/Chauvelin fulfill all my requirements as far as enemies to lovers ships are concerned.

23. Name a fic you’ve written that you’re especially fond of & explain why you like it.

I’ve talked a lot about Forgiveness being one of the very few things I’ve written that I’ve ever liked and the ONE thing that I feel…gets my idea of how L/R WORK together and probably shows off my style best, along with Fowl Play (WHICH HAS FANART NOW. WHICH I’M STILL NOT OVER BECAUSE MY BABY HAS FANART.) So, instead, I’m going to shift to Pour la Peine, which…is my messy, messy child in many regards, not the least because it’s so much longer + still isn’t finished.

(Warning for various and assorted personal, squishy feelings, as well as cancer mentions)

When I first got the prompt from @fallenidol-453, it was January of 2018. Two months before, I’d received the news that my uncle had Stage Four Esophageal Cancer and my mother had moved from our house to his house to care for him, leaving me without her help for the first time in my life, which I deliberately kept as low-key about on here as I could be, given that, to be honest, dealing with the endless “I’m so sorry to hear that”s gets very exhausting after awhile and I was a college student with a schedule to keep. And he and I had a very…contentious relationship, despite the two of us being alike in many ways. Possibly because we were alike in many ways. And, by May of that year, he was dead. And I would learn shortly afterwards that my paternal grandfather had died in January, but no one on my father’s side had bothered to tell me. I spent a lot of time trying to deal with the stress of that time, juggling that with my schoolwork and my fanfic, which I tried to work on from the time I received the prompt onwards. (Tbh, I’d had the opening scene in my mind for awhile before, but I hadn’t had a larger plot + ending until the prompt.)

At first, I thought that I would publish it like I’d later publish Forgiveness, in one straight chapter, but as time went on and on and there became less and less of a shot of having it done any time soon, I ended up just publishing the first chapter and deciding to update it from there. And that chapter got a lot of ribbing from friends. “Her brother is dead” really came off as a very melodramatic first line, but I also decided, very early on, that I didn’t care about what the objective quality of it was; all I cared about was creating a snapshot of a time in my life, just like when I go through the stuff that I made when I was twelve and I laugh about the various and assorted OCs and questionable phrases but love them all the same because they’re my twelve year old self’s. And, where I was at that point in my life, writing Solène mourning a family member who she had a difficult relationship with while I mourned a family member who I had a difficult relationship with, it was the only line that felt right to me.

There’s a lot of things with this one that I’m still not sure about. There’s a plot twist that I’ve tried to be quiet about for all this time (that I’ve probably been really terrible about keeping, tbh) and that is either going to be the Jumping the Shark moment or the defining moment of it, and I’m obviously not sure how that’s going to be received though I want to believe I’ve foreshadowed it enough to not make it too much of a swerve, I’m not sure how I feel about the ending, there’s a lot there that’s murky and probably more reflective of my writing a year ago than not, and I’m not sure about how I’ve handled the character dynamics given what we’ve got in canon or the dynamic I’ve put them into, or whether the choices they’ll make reflect THEM or what I WANTED them to do. Hell, with a few things, I’m not sure how I’m even going to GET to the ending.

But, I’m really proud of how much I’ve had the chance to work with Solène and Olympe, I’m really happy with a lot of the work I put into sequences like the two chapters long March to Versailles, which involved looking into a LOT of personal accounts as well as secondary sources analyzing it, and I liked trying to flesh out Solène’s world. But, more importantly, of everything I’ve written, it and Le Cri are probably the most directly personal to me, and even though a part of me still says Her brother is dead is a hell of a melodramatic opening line, it fulfilled its purpose. And, tbh, sometimes that’s all a fic needs.

45. What is your all time favourite fanfic?

This is so hard for me, because there are so many fics that have left a huge impression on me throughout the various fandoms I’ve been in. In 1789 alone, I was thinking of at least two different fics at a given point, which is both fantastic and minorly stressful given how small this fandom is (one of which, incidentally, was Little Dove Heart, since that really gave me a huge push as far as Laz and his backstory and his characterization and his relationship to Artois, even if I tend to keep the latter more in the background). And there have been so many fics I’ve read that I’ll remember and go back to periodically, and that really helped me as far as looking at how character voices could be developed and how description would work and how to work a time period and a setting into a story.

Overall though, I think I’m going to have to give it to Vae Victis, which is a work by @sineala‘s. I’ve never been quiet about my undying love for the Gauls and for Brennus in particular. Brennus is one of my historical favs, and I felt like this fic did a really, really fantastic job of bringing that much-neglected period of time to life and developing the characters on their own, without me having any background in the source material. With fanfic, especially with a more active fandom, there’s kind of an expectation that everyone knows the characters involved, so to be able to work in a different time and to get the reader fully invested in the characters and their relationship in their own right is a really fantastic accomplishment, and to be able to show the Gauls and Brennus (in what little time he gets, because my boi’s not the focus and I accept that) as three dimensional figures rather than a rampaging horde is always much appreciated. And it has a WORKS CITED page at the end, AKA the eternal key to my heart.

#long post #berncat #sorry for the tragic backstory dump on PLP!#but there's a reason why it's still my baby despite everything

4 notes · View notes

copperhawks · 4 years

Text

Sav asks for a moment to think over everything Numair has said, promising he’ll make it back in time to dance with Numair later. As Numair leaves, though, he sees Don approaching and decides to quickly go change into a hawk to keep an eye on the confrontation.

Because he’s a nosy nancy.

Sav doesn’t greet Don particularly kindly, but it seems Don is making yet another attempt at reconciliation, though this time he’s trying harder to be kind himself, with Numair not actually in the room.

We have a lot of resentment built up, I guess, and it makes it hard to be sensible around you when I just want to lash out and hurt you like I’ve been hurt. That’s terrible. I’m terrible. We can’t keep doing this.

Don CAN acknowledge his own wrongdoings, as much as Sav seems to believe that he can’t. As much as Sav seems to believe Don is willfully blind about it all, this whole scene is an example of why that isn’t true. At least with regards to his relationship to Sav, he isn’t incapable of admitting to his own mistakes and at least claiming a desire to be better.

As Sav said to Numair back in chapter 21, apologies without action are manipulation. This might be where Sav’s experience with that comes from, as his response to Don’s apology and promise to do better is resounding disbelief in Don’s ability to even know what better is. Though Sav relates that assumption more to Don’s treatment of his own people and the laws on magic than he is talking about their personal relationship.

Sav, however, fresh off of Numair’s story about Ozorne and advice not to let Don drag him down, is not quite giving Don enough credit. We know from Constant that just before the assassins hit, Don had voted against further restrictions on mages, against the majority opinion. His reaction to Numair melting the courtyard also was mostly jealousy as we later see him inform Constant rather dismissively that Numair is welcome to come teach Constant things in the palace (though he obviously doesn’t know that the thing Constant is being taught is magic).

Don is not a wall, he is not refusing to see sense, as we have more than once gotten indications that Sav’s view of Don, or Elspeth’s view of Don, or even Daine’s view of Don, are not quite seeing the whole truth. The closest we get to that truth is through Constant, who through his somewhat unique view of the world, is a mostly objective observer. He is one of the few people we’ve seen Don calm and rational around. Everyone else he lashes out at, whether it’s because they treat him like royalty (Rain) or he feels they don’t respect him (basically everyone else). Everyone but Constant.

Things become awkward and Don tries to bring up things like Ossika and why Sav left so quickly after the assassins were subdued, which Sav uses as an opportunity to try to talk to Don about Ossika and warn him of the people in his midst who could be a threat. He even tries to bring up Numair’s discovery with the opals and his thoughts on what they’re doing to Don, but he doesn’t get much further than Numair’s name before Don is demanding to know if Sav loves Numair.

Does he make you happy? That’s all I came to ask. I mean, initially, I came to apologise for my behaviour this morning, but then I saw you were alone with him and I realised I couldn’t … intrude. Until he was gone. And now I want to know if you’re happy or, if you could be. Could you be? If he does, you should pursue that. We very rarely get happiness, people like us. It would be nice if at least one of us escaped that.

While Sav refuses to answer this question, this is a massive moment of growth for Don. Earlier in the scene he admits that he can’t quite bring himself to be HAPPY for Sav’s new relationship, but he also loves Sav enough to recognize that Sav has an opportunity here, one he’d be remiss not to take. He does want Sav’s happiness, but he’s honest enough to admit that he’d rather Sav found that happiness with him than Numair.

It’s a step closer to figuring things out, for Don. Just a step, a baby one. But making this choice, here, to let Sav go, to tell him that he should take any opportunity for happiness he finds because they’re so precious, is an important one for their relationship. I mentioned earlier that one of the biggest issues in their relationship is the sense of possessiveness that is inherent to their relationship to the imbalance of power in it. Sav was born to be an extension of Don, was handed over in order to act as such when he was just a baby, stripped of family and friends so that he could live the rest of his life belonging to his monarch. Don recognizing that that doing what’s best for Sav may not be what’s best for himself, realizing that Sav is genuinely happy with someone else and begging him not to restart the relationship as he did during the face painting scene but just to try to be friends again, at the very least to be CIVIL to each other for Constant and Daine’s sake. That’s important.

Equally as important is Sav’s response to Don talking about his impending nuptials and his worries about who he can trust, who he should yield to.

While your plight grieves me, it’s not mine. Fight your own battles, Don. I am not your sword anymore.

As important as it is for Don to let Sav go, it’s just as important for Sav to let Don go. They’ll always love each other, Sav’s admitted to as much, but that doesn’t mean they have to BE together. Sav doesn’t have to let himself be consumed by Don. Don doesn’t have to lean on Sav alone.

Sav NEEDS that distance between himself and Don, for his own sake. Sav seems to be aware that if he lets himself grow close again, if he gives even an inch, then he’ll likely just let himself get sucked back into old habits and old patterns.

But Don has been left alone because of this and recognizes that, personally and politically, he NEEDS someone in his corner. And for most if not all of his life, that person has been Sav. He doesn’t seem to have anyone else he can truly turn to, so time and again, when given the opportunity, he tries to bring Sav back.

Constant described the their relationship as isolating and all-encompassing. Neither of them could think about anyone else when together. Neither of them left ROOM for anyone else when together. They’re very co-dependent, to both of their detriment.

One of the things that allowed Jon to do as well as he did when he had to take over the throne at a very young age was his MANY relationships with the other noble sons he grew up with (and Alanna). Even if the older nobility had been picked off the way Galla’s nobility has been, Jon would not have been left entirely alone. He’d still have Raoul and Gary and the other boys he’d met and known and become friends with. Jon had a relationship with Alanna, sure, but his entire existence did not revolve around her. Alanna was not his only confidant or his only friend the way it seems Sav was for Don. And the same is true in the reverse, Alanna had friends outside of Jon, outside of their smaller page/squire friend group. Both of them had support outside of each other in a way Sav and Don didn’t. So when their relationship fell apart, it didn’t destroy them and it didn’t force Jon into a position where he was ruling by himself with no one to turn to but an ex who can’t stand to be around him.

Sav meeting Numair is the first step he’s taken to create a new network of support outside of Don. It provides Sav with someone to confide in and be vulnerable to that ISN’T DON.

Don doesn’t have that. Not yet, at least. If he’s going to be saved, if GALLA is going to be saved, he’s going to need someone to stand in his corner with him.

And it can’t be Sav.

#tamora pierce #tortall #the immortals #the immortals quartet #daine au lb #savigny de hartholm #king donatien #otp: king's rose #long post

0 notes

confessionsofanoperaghost · 7 years

Text

Ooh I was tagged! 🖤

Rules: a) always post the rules, answer the questions then write 11 questions of your own b) tag 11 people and link them to the post c) tell the person who tagged you that you’ve answered your questions. @elizabethdaae made these questions:

1. Who is your favorite Christine in any Phantom adaptation? This is a little difficult. Surprisingly there are scads of adaptations that I've never actually seen. However, I did just recently see Sierra Boggess and something about her performance really gutted me.

2. If you could ask Leroux a question about Phantom, what would it be? There's a bit in Apollo's Lyre where Christine is talking about the couple of weeks she lived with Erik after the unmasking with the line: "what more can I tell you dear?" UM. A LOT. EVERYTHING, ACTUALLY.

3. If you could add the Persian to any adaptation of Phantom that he is not in, which would you? Definitely ALW, just because he'd be so much more visible.

4. How do you feel about the Universal remake of Phantom? The upcoming one? Honestly, I don't know if Universal has what it takes to get their franchise off the ground. I think they'll abandon the project before we get anything new. BECAUSE I AM PERPETUALLY CYNICAL AND BITTER ABOUT CINEMA IN THE USA

5. Which Phantom adaptation would you like to go back in time to see the premiere of? 1925, sneak preview if possible. FEED ME THE ORIGINAL FOOTAGE FOR GODSAKE

6. Would you change anything about the original novel? I would fix some timeline nonsense, I'd make Raoul a little more self-aware and I would have left a better hole for possibilities of Erik surviving at the end.

7. Would you like to see Susan Kay’s Phantom adapted to film? On the one hand, hell yes. Because phantom movies, holy shit. On the other hand, her shit is already accepted as canon by a lot of people and I feel like that gives my own fledgling phic a harder time. But that's just silly.

8. Who do you think would make the best Erik in a Leroux-accurate movie? My boy Doug Jones. I don't trust a regular leading man with my husband. Gotta be a monster actor. (Andy Serkis can audition but Doug is my first choice for obvs)

9. If they made a Phantom cookbook, what would Erik’s recipe be? Something that's a fusion of different Indo-European flavors like beef Bourguignon spiced with ginger, cumin and Aleppo pepper. Spicy flavors from the east and thick sauces from France.

10. What do you think the characters in the novel would think of Love Never Dies? HA! Meg Giry (age 15): screaming Madame Giry: disgusted Raoul: hurt... maybe even a little paranoid about the Phandom at large Christine: half intrigued but spends most of the play glaring at the asshole who wrote this crazy self-insert fantasy Erik: slips ALW 20 thousand francs and grins maniacally sees Christine glaring sees everyone else glaring "What?!?"

Hee hee! My questions:

1) what actors--dead and/or alive--would you like to see play The Persian Daroga?

2) favorite line from the novel (any translation)

3) a detailed account of exactly how you feel about Michael Crawford's voice

4) a detailed account of exactly how you feel about Sarah Brightman's voice

5) do you think Madame Giry in the NOVEL knows more than she lets on? Headcanon: how much more? As much as ALW thinks?

6) why do YOU think Erik built a mirrored torture chamber IN his house? If I'm reading the passages of the book right it's only accessible via a hole in the ceiling and a trap door in the floor. But several huge, heavy mirrors.... not to mention a metal tree and a frigging VIEW WINDOW INTO THE LOUIS-PHILIPPE ROOM. Like, Christine's private bedroom. Lol wat. I have questions, Erik.

7) what's your headcanon about the state Christine is in when she first hears The Angel of Music?

8) if money was no object and you were so inclined, what are some things YOUR OWN non-replica production would feature (i.e.: what would you do differently with the existing ALW musical)

9) who is your favorite Raoul from any adaptation and why?

10) some things that you love and loathe about Susan Kay's Phantom

11) any and everything you'd like to see for a new adaptation of Erik's background??? (Think of this as me taking requests. Kinda)

Everybody who wants to do this should! Also if I tag you and you don't wanna no worries. @chris--daae @bronze-and-navy-is-creating-1 @rjdaae @callme-c0nn0r @coulsart @rienerose @fdelopera @queenofthemorgue @romephantom @fantomexnoir @glimmeroniron @mistressmaeb @eriks-fedora @elizabethdaae @rue-scribe-siren @alvadee @embergeist @allthisandtea @inbetweeness @loudlewdlyricalmiracle @opera-ghost @viscountess @wolfgangamaderik

#phandom #phamily #headcanons #questions #poto #alw musical #cog #research #mktg research

3 notes · View notes

dawnjeman · 6 years

Text

Palm Beach Florida Dream Home

Designed by Jacksonville based,and one of my absolutely favorite interior designers, Andrew Howard of Andrew Howard Interior Design, (recently featured here), this Palm Beach, Florida home was a blank canvas when the current homeowners purchased it. Then, the idea of transforming it into their dream vacation home finally came true when they hired Andrew, who knew how to bring personality into every single space while keeping them connected to the next. The home now is not only perfect for this couple but also for their adult children and friends.

Pin your favorite interior pictures and have fun touring this beautiful Florida home. It will leave you inspired!

Palm Beach, Florida Dream Home

The exterior of this Florida home feels classic and classy.

White stucco is complemented with navy shutters.

Kitchen

This is the type of kitchen that never goes out of style! The off-white cabinets are painted in Benjamin Moore White Dove – another classic choice!

Cabinets: River City Custom Cabinets Jacksonville, FL

Marble Countertop: Mystery White

Backsplash: Mosaic House Tanger Mosaic – Beautiful Backsplash Tiles: Here, Here & Here.

Faucet: By Owner – similar Here & Here.

Pendant Lighting: Remains Sorenson Pendant – similar Here, Here & Here.

Barstools: Lee Industries 5983-51 SW (swivel) – Beautiful Swivel Counterstools: Here, Here, Here, Here & Here.

Similar Hardware: Pulls & Knobs.

Dining Room

The dining room has an inviting coastal feel with off-white walls, painted in Paper White by Benjamin Moore, striped blue rug, light wood dining table and the paneled ceiling. The stunning vaulted tongue-and-groove ceiling was designed by the builder Eddie Naugle.

Table: Custom – Other Beautiful Dining Tables: here, here, here, here & here.

Chairs: Vintage – similar here & here.

Rug: Dash and Albert

Chandelier: Urban Electric Alexander

Beach Art: Thomas Hager thru Sears Peyton in New York – Other Beach Art: Here.

Fabric on cushions: Raoul Textiles Flame stitch thru Grizzel and Mann Atlanta.

Living Room

Color on walls: BM 1590 – Color on ceiling: BM White Dove.

Sofa: Hickory Chair Silhouettes Lawson Arm Sofa – similar here & here.

Upholstered armchairs: Lee Industries 1074-01

Pillows: Sister Parish Albert Blue and Quadrille Dune Multi Color

Chair: Palecek Dunmere Lounge Chair

Rug: Fibreworks Kochi : Birch

Curtain fabric: Ferrick Mason Bizzy Bloom – Blue (thru Studio 4)

Shop the Look:

JavaScript is currently disabled in this browser. Reactivate it to view this content.

Family Room

This family room has plenty of personality and it looks so comfy! The navy blue trim paint color is Benjamin Moore 840 Kensington Blue.

Wallpaper: Cowtan and Tout Pattern Darby. Color:Linen

Rope Side Table: Here.

Sofa: Lee Sleeper 5732-29

Rug: Dash and Albert Lattice Dove Grey Cotton Rug

Coffee table: Century – Thomas O’Brien AE9-603

Curtain fabric: Studio Bon Genevieve Navy / Red

Artwork: Trowbridge Airplane Framed

Pendant lighting: Urban Electric – Lundy

Laundry Room Paint Color

Blue Cabinet Paint Color: Benjamin Moore 808 Sapphire Ice.

Similar Hardware: Here.

Guest Bedroom

There’s nothing boring about this guest bedroom, including the ceiling, which is painted in Benjamin Moore 708 White Rain.

Beds: Custom in Fabricut Dublin Linen with Samuel and Sons Labyrinth tape

Bedding: Pine Cone Hill White Diamond and Sferra Dorio Throw at foot of bed

Benches and fabric: Lee 9219-90 Fabric: HB Luxe Strata – Pomegranate – similar here, here & here.

Wallpaper: Cowtan and Tout Basket Ivory – similar here.

Rug: Woolshire Central Park – Fawn

Shade fabric: Galbraith and Paul Spring Garden

Guest Bathroom Wallpaper

Wallpaper: Quadrille Java Java Salmon on White.

Tile flooring: Custom – similar here.

Cabinetry: River City Custom Cabinet

Similar Cabinet Hardware: here.

Similar Artwork: here & here.

Lighting: Visual Comfort.

Master Bedroom

Paint color is Benjamin Moore 1590 Paper White. Color on ceiling: Benjamin Moore 694 Colony Green.

Bed: Custom

Bedding: Matouk

Bench: Mitchell Gold Cody Cocktail Bench

Sofa: Baker 6924 in Romo Crosshatch

Chair: Hickory Eton Chair

Rug: Couristan Park Slope White

Lighting: Custom made in Alan Campbell Fabric

Similar Artwork: Here.

Master Bathroom

Isn’t this bathroom dreamy?! This is not a big space but it was perfectly done! Bathroom paint color is Benjamin Moore OC-31 Fog Mist.

Tub: By owner – similar here.

Tub filler: Lefroy Brooks – similar here.

Tile flooring: New Ravenna

Lighting: Visual Comfort Barbara Barry.

Thank you, Andrew Howard for sharing all of the details above!

Interior Design: Andrew Howard – Instagram.

Architecture: Edward H. Sheahan, Edward H. Sheahan III P.A.

Builder: Eddie Naugle, Hobgood Construction, Inc.

Photography: Max Kim-Bee.

Styled by Liz Strong.

Time to $ave!!! Summer Best Deals!

Thank you for shopping through Home Bunch. I would be happy to assist you if you have any questions or are looking for something in particular. Feel free to contact me and always make sure to check dimensions before ordering. Happy shopping!

Joss & Main: Flash Deals! Up to 75% Off!!!

Wayfair: Up to 70% OFF – Huge Sales on Decor, Furniture & Rugs!!

Pottery Barn: New Arrivals!!! Up to 70% Off!

Serena & Lily: 20% OFF EVERYTHING! Use code: 4TH

West Elm: Mega Sale – 70% Off sales!

Caitlin Wilson: Beautiful Rugs & Pillows.

Anthropologie: Extra 40% Off Sale Plus 20% Off Furniture + Decor.

Urban Outfitters: Hip & Affordable Home Decor – Big Summer Sales!!!

Horchow: Flash Sale: Up to 55% Off!!!

One Kings Lane: Save Up to 70% OFF! Free Standard Shipping on Orders over $99!

Williams & Sonoma: Spring Clearance: Up to 75% OFF!.

Nordstrom: Up to 40% OFF!

Neiman Marcus: Designer Sale: Up to 40% OFF.

Pier 1: Biggest Memorial Day Sale: Up to 50% Off!

JCPenny: Final Hours of Huge Sale.

Posts of the Week:

Georgian Home Design Ideas.

Interior Design Ideas: California Coastal Home.

Custom Home with Artisan Craftsmanship Interiors.

New-Construction Modern Farmhouse Inspiration.

Beautiful Homes of Instagram: Andrea McQueen Design.

Texas Gulf Coast Beach House.

Interior Design Ideas: House For Sale.

Georgian-Style Manor with Traditional Interiors.

Interior Design Ideas: Colorful Interiors.

Beautiful Homes of Instagram: California Beach House.

New-Construction Home for First-time Home Buyer.

California Beach House with Beautiful Coastal Interiors.

Grey Kitchen Paint Colors.

You can follow my pins here: Pinterest/HomeBunch

See more Inspiring Interior Design Ideas in my Archives.

Popular Paint Color Posts: The Best Benjamin Moore Paint Colors

2016 Paint Color Ideas for your Home

Interior Paint Color and Color Palette Pictures

Interior Paint Color and Color Palette Ideas

Inspiring Interior Paint Color Ideas

Interior Paint Color and Color Palette

New 2015 Paint Color Ideas

Interior Paint Color Ideas

Interior Design Ideas: Paint Color

Interior Ideas: Paint Color

More Paint Color Ideas

“Dear God,

If I am wrong, right me. If I am lost, guide me. If I start to give-up, keep me going.

Lead me in Light and Love”.

Have a wonderful day, my friends and we’ll talk again tomorrow.”

with Love,

Luciane from HomeBunch.com

Interior Design Services within Your Budget

Come Follow me on

Get Home Bunch Posts Via Email

Contact Luciane

“For your shopping convenience, this post might contain links to retailers where you can purchase the products (or similar) featured. I make a small commission if you use these links to make your purchase so thank you for your support!”

from Home http://www.homebunch.com/palm-beach-florida-dream-home/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

0 notes

littlelonghairedoutlawllho · 7 years

Note

What are your Pharoga headcanons?

I’m going to base this in Flashes ‘verse, because that’s where I’ve done most of my Pharoga thinking.

Erik has a habit of stealing Rahim’s watch. He brought it with him from Persia, and years later returned it to him in Paris, but when he’s worried or nervous or needs to think, he’ll take the watch and fiddle with it.

Erik’s habit of taking Rahim’s watch often leads to Rahim taking Erik’s watch, and sometimes the two of them can be sitting together on the sofa or in Box Five with their watch chains crossed between them, where they are each holding the other’s one.

Erik starts taking laudanum to help him sleep only because his nightmares once kept Rahim awake so long that he collapsed while talking to Raoul, and Erik never wants to go through that worry of wondering if Rahim will ever wake up again.

As Rahim gets older he suffers more and more from headaches, and when they come on Erik goes to bed with him, and holds him as he dozes, and wishes that he didn’t have to suffer so.

Rahim’s greatest regret is that he did not leave Persia with Erik, but at the time he felt it best that he stay, so as not to slow Erik down. If he were to make the choice again he would go with him.

Sometimes Rahim is the one who suffers from nightmares, and they are always based in the injuries Erik has sustained, sometimes in the ones from Persia, and sometimes in the ones he received the night he was attacked in Paris. He does not speak of these to Erik, and always does his best not to wake him when he wakes.

Erik knows about Rahim’s nightmares, and always makes sure to hold him a little tighter when he thinks its time for one, and does not object or ask questions when Rahim runs his fingers over his scars.

Erik has poor circulation, especially after he suffers a near-fatal bout of pneumonia which supplied Rahim with enough nightmare fuel to last a lifetime. His poor circulations means he’s very sensitive to the cold, and his fingers sometimes get stiff with it, which makes playing his music difficult. Rahim takes his hands when he’s suffering and rubs liniment into them. For all that he loves Erik’s music, he always knows that Erik depends on it to help keep him sane, and he will not risk Erik losing the ability to play.

After that battle with pneumonia Erik’s singing voice becomes rougher. He laments the loss of how it used to sound before, but Rahim comes to love how it sounds now, and feels that the touch of gravel makes him sounder wiser. And, though he is biased, he considers it quite attractive. With time Erik comes to accept the gravelly undertone, and knows that considering his age he shouldn’t be too surprised.

After Erik moves onto the Rue de Rivoli he only visits the house beneath the Garnier occasionally. On the night that Christine goes into labour with her second child he rushes down there so that he can panic in solitude. Rahim follows him, and stays with him, and promises that she will be all right. Both of them love her as if she were their daughter, and with time they come to see Raoul as a son.

They like to go for walks in the evening time, and to visit the Garnier roof on particularly starry nights. This is difficult for Erik when his knees are acting up, so they don’t get to go up there as often as they’d like, but mostly they are happy just to be close to each other.

Erik does not attend Raoul and Christine’s wedding because the crowd is so big. Or at least, he does not officially attend. He hides himself in the church and listens, misses the meal at the reception, and afterwards dances with Rahim in the private Chagny garden while the band is playing for the wedding guests inside. Raoul and Christine join them, and Christine dances with both Rahim and Erik while Raoul watches on, and smiles to think that in marrying her he somehow managed to acquire two more fathers.

#shauna replies #pharoga #flashes of a lifetime together #phantom stuff #smilebomber

40 notes · View notes

jamiegriffithsunit5unit13 · 5 years

Text

DADA

Raoul Hausmann The Art Critic 1919–20

Started: 1916

Ended: 1924

Dada was an art movement formed during the First World War in Zurich in negative reaction to the horrors and folly of the war. The art, poetry and performance produced by dada artists is often satirical and nonsensical in nature

Dada artists felt the war called into question every aspect of a society capable of starting and then prolonging it – including its art. Their aim was to destroy traditional values in art and to create a new art to replace the old. As the artist Hans Arp later wrote:

Revolted by the butchery of the 1914 World War, we in Zurich devoted ourselves to the arts. While the guns rumbled in the distance, we sang, painted, made collages and wrote poems with all our might.

In addition to being anti-war, dada was also anti-bourgeois and had political affinities with the radical left.

Key individuals

The founder of dada was a writer, Hugo Ball. In 1916 he started a satirical night-club in Zurich, the Cabaret Voltaire, and a magazine which, wrote Ball, ‘will bear the name ”Dada”. Dada, Dada, Dada, Dada.’ This was the first of many dada publications. Dada became an international movement and eventually formed the basis of surrealism in Paris after the war.

Tristan Tzara was a Romanian and French avant-garde poet, essayist and performance artist. Also active as a journalist, playwright, literary and art critic, composer and film director, he was known best for being one of the founders and central figures of the anti-establishment Dada movement.

Leading artists associated with it include Arp, Marcel Duchamp, Francis Picabia and Kurt Schwitters. Duchamp’s questioning of the fundamentals of Western art had a profound subsequent influence.

How was the work created?

Dada artists are known for their use of ready-made objects - everyday objects that could be bought and presented as art with little manipulation by the artist. The use of the ready-made forced questions about artistic creativity and the very definition of art and its purpose in society.

Ici, C'est Stieglitz (Here, This is Stieglitz) (1915) Artist: Francis Picabia

Picabia was a French artist who embraced the many ideas of Dadaism and defined some himself. He very much enjoyed going against convention and re-defining himself to work in new ways a number of times over a career that spanned over 45 years.

Once the war ended in 1918, many of the artists returned to their home countries, helping to further spread the movement. The end of Dada in Zürich followed the Dada 4-5 event in April 1919 that by design turned into a riot, something that Tzara thought furthered the aims of Dada by undermining conventional art practices through audience involvement in art production. The riot, which began as a Dada event, was one of the most significant. It attracted over 1000 people and began with a conservative speech about the value of abstract art that was meant to anger the crowd.

Tied closely to Dada irreverence was their interest in humour, typically in the form of irony. In fact, the embrace of the ready-made is key to Dada's use of irony as it shows an awareness that nothing has intrinsic value. Irony also gave the artists flexibility and expressed their embrace of the craziness of the world thus preventing them from taking their work too seriously or from getting caught up in excessive enthusiasm or dreams of utopia. Their humour is an unequivocal YES to everything as art.

Fountain (1917) Artist: Marcel Duchamp

Duchamp was the first artist to use a ready-made and his choice of a urinal was guaranteed to challenge and offend even his fellow artists. There is little manipulation of the urinal by the artist other than to turn it upside-down and to sign it with a fictitious name. By removing the urinal from its everyday environment and placing it in an art context, Duchamp was questioning basic definitions of art as well as the role of the artist in creating it. With the title, Fountain, Duchamp made a tongue in cheek reference to both the purpose of the urinal as well to famous fountains designed by Renaissance and Baroque artists.

0 notes

kathrynkfuller9 · 7 years

Text

Successful IJL 2017 closes with Insignity named as “Exhibitor of the Year”

Insignety, the new retail, in-store design experience launched at the show, was named as the winner of this year’s new Editors’ Choice Award – ‘Exhibitor of the Year’ – by a prestigious panel of industry magazine editors. Aptly highlighting the success of the IJL 2017 experience, which combined state-of-the-art technology dovetailed with finely executed craftsmanship across all show sectors, to deliver a new and exciting retail experience for visitors and exhibitors alike.

Sam Willoughby, Event Director, observed: “Insignety deservedly walked away with the IJL Editors’ Choice ‘Exhibitor of the Year’ Award. A perfectly polished concept delivered with the utmost professionalism, signalling a massive leap forward for jewellery retailing. An excellent reflection of what the show delivered so successfully this year. The combination of technology innovation and superb design and creative skills which, when linked together, is undoubtedly the way forward for the future success of the industry. And it was our aim to bring this to life at this year’s show through all the many new initiatives we launched at the event – which I am pleased to say, from the very positive feedback we’ve received, we have achieved!”

Insignety offers consumers the opportunity to capture and create their special piece of jewellery through new age technology and golden-age skills. Mark Bos, CEO of Insignety, explained: ‘Our core values are passion and quality. We have invested much time and enormous effort in realising this exciting retail proposition. The response at IJL was huge and although I’m not at liberty to say which will be our first door, I can say most doors are open!’

New collections from more than 500 designers and brands from 43 countries were showcased at IJL 2017, including 184 new exhibitors, international suppliers and manufacturers, plus the best of British participated alongside new show sectors and new show features. These included not only the very popular new Retail Experience and Jewellery LIVE! areas but also the revitalised seminar programme. All visibly demonstrating the importance of both the contemporary and the traditional skills.

As part of providing exhibitors with year-round support, IJL launched its one day, free to attend Summer Masterclass in June, designed to help exhibitors pre-plan their show, learn from inspiring industry leaders and get the most out of networking, PR and marketing opportunities. Feedback from attendees at the show was very positive, confirming it had definitely enhanced their show experience.

First time exhibitor Rachel Whitehead explained: “ IJL 2017 was my first ever trade show and the generous feed of knowledge and experience the organisers and press provided really helped me plan and execute my launch. The clever merchandising tips and know-how were invaluable.”

Flora Bhattachary, jewellery designer and founder of Flora Bhattachary Fine Jewellery, ex IJL KickStarter, added: “This one day Masterclass really helped me pre-plan my show approach IJL far more calmly. The bullet points of ’what to do when’ were so helpful.”

Second year exhibitor and Editors’ Choice winner for Technical Trailblazer, Susi Smither, founder and designer of The Rock Hound agreed: “I loved the Master Class! It fed me new ideas which in turn gave me extra confidence when approaching customers at the show. Also it was great getting to know the IJL family.”

Event Director, Sam Willoughby, had the final word : “Exhibiting at IJL is not just three days – it is a 365 day experience for exhibitors. We really do go the extra mile to create a first class event for the industry as a whole – exhibitors and visitors – and are incredibly grateful to our amazing line up of industry luminaries, including Stephen Webster and Shaun Leane, who helped make that possible. And also our thanks go to the industry press, consumer press, TV crews and bloggers who all came to the show and helped spread the IJL message to a vast audience. Thank you everyone and we do hope you all had a really successful show!”

And this is what some of the designers and brands had to say:

“IJL provides us the opportunity to show our new launches to new and existing accounts. I would recommend the show to other companies as there are a variety of buyers, the London venue is easily accessible and the show gives us the chance to catch up with our retailers and see the new launches of other brands.” Philippa Glinn, Account Manager, Astley Clarke.

“As a British brand, our presence at IJL as a UK show is important for us. I have particularly enjoyed networking with customers at this year’s show.” Benjamin Caplan, Sales Manager, Yoko London.

“IJL is the only jewellery event of quality in the UK. The show is designed for quality customers in a quality venue. Exhibiting at IJL for forty years has been a milestone in my career. Thank you IJL!” Howard Graham, Managing Director, Ntinga.

“IJL has provided us with great exposure to a wide range of clients. I have particularly enjoyed the Seminars – they are not only interesting but offer great insight from leading industry professionals.” Colin McGuinness, Scientist, De Beers UK.

“IJL once again has provided an excellent showcase for the industry. It’s great to meet up with so many friends and new trade contacts. Our collections, especially Chatsworth House Style, were very well received, while our head turning Devonshire House Ball headdress was filmed for TV at the show.” Chris Sellors, managing director, C W Sellors Fine Jewellery.

“IJL is the only major UK jewellery industry show. It has been the perfect platform for us to launch our brand into the UK and Irish market.” Raoul Sagal, UK Brand Manager, Nanis Italian Jewels.

“IJL gives visitors an all-round event experience – and being part of the show this year has meant that we’ve connected with new and exciting customers in a fresh and vibrant setting”. Hollie Francis, Sales Manager, Henryka.

“IJL has been amazing for us and met all our business needs and objectives, attracting a number of excellent potential customers. Compared to other events, networking has also been easier. Definitely a show to participate in and as a new exhibitor, IJL has been supportive and flexible throughout, taking our needs into consideration to help ensure we had a good show.” Aashina Seih, Marketing Co-ordinator, Cara Jewellers.

“IJL offers the opportunity for great customer interaction and industry catch up which are vital for our business. It is an unique show as it provides the opportunity to entertain and have fun with a wide range of customers.” Tom Cornwell, Wholesale Manager, Alex Monroe.

“Having launched Dog Fever earlier this year with great success and a huge amount of interest, IJL has offered us the perfect platform to further establish and grow the brand in the UK and Irish markets. It is perfect for networking and establishing new business relationships, as well as being perfectly positioned within the calendar for buyers to start thinking and placing orders for Christmas.” Michael Fowler, Director, Saunders Shepherd.

“The location of IJL makes it stand out from other competitive events and it is at a good time of the year which suits our business needs. There’s a broad range of visitors with a great mix of exhibitors”. Ian Elliot, Co-Founder, Elliot Brown Watch

“IJL is a great opportunity to show our pearl ranges at a prestigious London venue. The show attracts a broad range of important retailers and the seminar programme is excellent, providing a good opportunity for staff training.” Miranda Raw, Director, Raw Pearls.

“IJL has given us the opportunity to meet new customers. One of our favourite parts of the show was trend spotting! IJL is a well-run show and the organisers are very helpful.” Oonagh Doyle, Sales Director, Newbridge Silverware.

“We’ve met with existing customers in the UK, as well as a few new potential buyers. Olympia is a good location and the timing of the show is right.” Igor Zubovskij, Managing Director, Koliz Vostok.

“IJL is a world ahead of other industry trade events currently in the UK. The show has been extremely successful for us.” Leon Rhodes, Country Manager (UK), Christina Jewellery and Obaku, Denmark.

“IJL is an elegant show and well organised. It meets our business needs by providing a platform for networking and meeting new customers and high quality visitors who are relevant to our brand.” Nova Borg, Head of Marketing, Lumitoro.

“We have had an excellent show – fulfilling our stock requirements and networking with brands, suppliers and peers. The IJL Diamond Club is wonderful – it’s a great place to meet and evaluate the day with colleagues and clients.” Ashley Pugh, Managing Director, W. Bruford Ltd.

“IJL is the only show that covers every aspect of all things jewellery related! Being part of the KickStart programme has provided me with an amazing platform to promote my business. I’ve met such a breadth of buyers and suppliers from all over the world – some of whom I’ve been wanting to show my work to as well as new ones.” 2017 KickStarter and winner of the Industry Award, Alice Barnes, Designer.

“I think IJL is more professional than other competitive events. It is the premier show for the jewellery industry. I have been so impressed by the interest from visitors and the positive feedback – and orders!” 2017 Bright Young Gem, Ishtar Liljefors, Jewellery Designer, Ishtar Liljefors Jewellery.

from Trending Jewellery http://blog.jewellerylondon.com/successful-ijl-2017-closes-with-insignity-named-as-exhibitor-of-the-year/

0 notes