"To The Edge"

The Forum Opera

The Story - and the performance

Act 1

Scene 1

A fashionable London street market. Hywa is serving on a stall. Romeo enters, angrily cursing his failed marriage, has a row with Hywa, leaving her in tears. Felicia, originally from Peru, enters, comforts Hywa, sings of her own 'sorrow'. The action freezes, with a strange sound. The action is rerun, and Felicia recruits Hywa into an opera company.

Romeo sings of his unhappiness

Felicia comforts Hywa

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Scene 2

A pub. James is sitting alone, writing a poem, which he sings - of his longing for an unattainable woman. Romeo, who is a colleague of James, enters unseen, and makes sarcastic remarks. Romeo joins James for a drink, and makes dismissive comments about the opera James is taking part in. The action freezes, with the strange sound. The action is rerun, and James recruits Romeo into the opera company.

James works on his poem

Romeo derides the opera

Romeo lost in thought

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Scene 3

A rehearsal venue. The four characters enter one by one, with banter and discussion between them. X appears, and shouts out challenges to the others. X then runs a 'game' to determine which of them shall play which role in the opera.

Romeo and Felicia arrive for the rehearsal

James warms up

They all wonder what to do

X leaps on the stage and takes over

X forces James to choose a card - his role

They argue about what happens next

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Scene 4

The rehearsal venue. The 4 main characters rehearse scenes from the opera, and react to the roles they have to play and the ways they have to perform. James has to play The President, a patriarchal figure. Felicia has to play the President's Wife. Romeo has to play the leader of the guerrillas, and begins to enjoy himself as a hero figure. Hywa has to play Mona, a glamorous woman, posing as the President's mistress, but really the guerrilla leader's partner. X again intervenes to disrupt the action.