
Sergei and I saw the LA Opera's production of The Fly this evening. It was directed by David Cronenberg with music by composer Howard Long, the director and composer of the the 1986 version of the film. The english libretto was by David Henry Hwang, librettist of Madama Butterfly. The opera was set in the 1950s as a nod to the original SciFi film, though the plot was nearly identical to the 1986 version.

I have not seen the original 1958 version of The Fly. I've only seen Cronenberg's versions, both movie and opera, and I like them. I like the underlying themes that its viewers are forced to confront.
One of the most prominent themes in the story is that of our own mortality and the fact that each days brings us ever closer to death. Seth Brundle's accelerated decline serves to make more poignant his imminent demise. He is a man who is at his peak, having just discovered love and also an invention capable of "changing the world as we know it." Still, fate knows no bounds, and time inevitably marches on. David Cronenberg said, "we've all got the disease, the disease of being finite."

There is the issue of alienation in the age of technology which is becoming ever more prominent in our world. In The Fly Brundle isolates himself from the world by throwing himself into his work, an invention that is meant to "change the world as we know it." He is redeemed by Veronica Quaife, who offers him companionship and love, only to be re-isolated after his invention goes terribly wrong. It is a parallel to modern technology (cell phones and the internet) in the sense that these inventions, which were meant to make communication more accessible, seem to have instead resulted in a decline in face to face contact.



In a related theme, a character's outward appearance is not necessarily an indication of that character's inner self. If a disfigured character proves to be kind and venerable it reinforces the principle that deformity is not tantamount to inner evil. Brundlefly of the opera was not nearly as easy to empathize with as Brundlefly of the movie. "I am an insect who dreamed he was a man and loved it, but now the dream is over and the insect is awake." Unfortunately, Opera Brundlefly devolves quickly into a barbaric and savage creature that lacks any semblance of humanity. I thought the film had a more effective ending, with Brundlefly begging Veronica for a mercy killing while Veronica cries. In the opera Veronica does kill Brundlefly, but it is not at his request, and she doesn't seem distraught when she shoots him.


The Fly opera definitely supplied an ample amount of food for thought, but it must be noted that the music wasn't anything to get excited about. I'm not saying it was terrible, but it just wasn't memorable. There is not a single aria or duet or any other piece of music that stands out in mind.
The libretto is the first I've heard in english, so I don't know how others are (I will see Madama Butterfly later this year, and perhaps The Grapes of Wrath too) but it sounded simplistic, repetitive and awkward. In short, it bugged me. Okay, okay, that was lame. My apologies. Perhaps all libretto's sound this way to the native speaker of the libretto's language.

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