Joan clung to Nomura's back as the troll leapt from building to building in a zig-zag across the dark, Jersey town. She closed her eyes and stifled a scream.
Nomura jerked to a stop, and Joan cracked open one eye.
Her stomach jumped as she saw the city lights, and the ground – over fifty feet below. Before she could look away, Nomura pushed off the high-rise. Joan screeched, squeezed her eyes shut, and counted, first to one hundred, then two.
When she reached one thousand, Nomura said, "Relax. We're here."
Joan dared a look. A roof top?
Nomura kicked open a trapdoor and slipped inside, Joan still on her back. The troll dropped onto a beam, hung above a familiar stage.
I've never seen it from up here… Joan's breath caught as Nomura took two careful steps. I wonder if the dressing-room window is still unlocked. To Nomura, she whispered, "So, this is how you got in when you listened to me?"
Nomura nodded.
Great security they have here.
Below, the lights were up. Joan was so used to seeing the theatre in the silent darkness, she almost didn't recognize the filled orchestra pit and plush seats holding dozens of men and women, dressed in their best evening attire. The people chatted and laughed as the orchestra tuned their instruments.
Deep red curtains hid the stage, but a boat bow jutted out one side and a clump of fake trees the other.
Her heart beat harder as Nomura glided along the beam to the rear of the theatre and let Joan slide off her back.
She sucked in a gasp at the steep drop separating her from the audience.
"Best seats in the house," Nomura said as she settled onto the beam.
"Erhh." Joan gulped and took a short step. She wind-milled both arms as she lost purchase on the smooth beam, but Nomura's strong hand pulled her steady.
"You might want to sit," Nomura quipped.
Joan nodded and eased down. She pulled her feet up and hugged her knees to her chin as the orchestra started their last round of tuning.
"You're lucky," Nomura said. "Today the French Paris Opera is playing. They've been on a world tour, so they'll only be here for one performance; tomorrow they move on to New York for three nights."
Joan's surprised gaze shot to Nomura.
"Tonight, it's Wagner's The Valkyrie," Nomura said. "An excellent piece. In fact, it may be one of the best I've heard. And I was there when the first opera was written!" Light sparked in Nomura's eyes.
"I've never… seen a real show before…" Joan breathed. A warm tingle spread through her; curiosity and excitement flooded after it. Joan scooted a little closer to the beam's edge and leaned forward.
"Easy there," Nomura hauled her back. "If you get too far away and slip, I can't catch you."
"Sorry." Joan blushed.
Instruments and audience quieted. The lights went down, and Joan gasped as the full, mellow strain of strings swelled through the theatre. As the rest of the orchestra joined in, the curtains opened. A man stumbled across the stage and clutched his arm as he searched the area.
"That's Sigmund," Nomura said. "He's in enemy territory. A storm's coming, so he's looking for shelter."
Sigmund sang as he wandered. Once he found a place to hide from the weather, a young woman stepped on stage and sang with him.
"She's Sieglind, the wife of Hunding – owner of the land and house. Sieglind allows Sigmund to rest there, but tells him he must leave before her husband returns, or Hunding with kill Sigmund."
Joan sat, enraptured as the pair sang to each other.
Throughout the show, Joan couldn't pry her eyes from the stage, but she caught glimpses of Nomura out of the corner of her eye. The troll seemed to look at her more often than the performers with quick, nervous glances, as though Nomura feared Joan would catch her looking.
Throughout the show, the troll provided explanation.
Joan was so enthralled, she forgot her fear of falling and leaned forward several times only to be hauled back by Nomura. She gasped and pointed at least five or six times during the first act alone, exclaiming, "Nomura, look! Do you see that?"
The troll smiled each time and replied, "I see it."
Music washed over Joan. Its power banished all words. Sometimes, she closed her eyes and let out a contented breath as she sank into its depths. Violins, cellos, trumpets, they all carried with them the story unfolding on stage, and each emotion rolled over her like a fresh ocean wave.
When the last note died, the audience cheered and shot to their feet. Applause deafened Joan, and she clapped with the sea of people below.
The orchestra stood and took a bow as the cast filed on stage and did the same three times.
As the lights came back up and the audience left, Joan swallowed the last rush of excitement.
"Well, you seem like you had a good time," Nomura said.
With misty eyes, Joan replied, "It was… the most wonderful thing I've ever seen; even more wonderful than…"
"What?"
Joan blushed and hid her face. "It was… a while ago. I walked to city centrum – no real reason, I just wanted to get away. No gangs out in centrum – just in the city outskirts. I was walking around, and then I… heard singing – to music. It was amazing." She stared out into the empty theatre. "I got closer, and there was this lady. A violin player was with her. The lady was tall and elegant. She wore this amazing dress; it was so white it glittered, like snow. A matching crystal flower was in her hair. As she sang…" Joan hugged her knees to her chin again. "She was so beautiful, dignified. I wanted to be like her. She made me forget – showed me another world. Can you imagine? Being able to take people to different places?" Sadness filled her. "But that's all a dream… isn't it?" She stared at the neat semi-circles of folded-up seats and the empty stage. "That down there… It was so wonderful; but it's only a play." Joan looked at Nomura in time to catch her smirking. "Hey! Don't laugh!"
"No, you don't understand. It's just… It was the same for me," Nomura said. She nodded to the stage. "That's the thing you want, isn't it?"
"Maybe…" Joan muttered. "Not like it's ever going to happen though."
"Why not?" Nomura said.
"Because, those people, they're not like me. I'm not – I can't even sing properly. I–" She hung her head. "I'm no good."
Nomura huffed and crossed her arms. "Now listen here, precious! You said you want to be like that woman you saw – able to transport people to another world, away from their troubles." The troll's tone softened. "You've already done that. I… heh… Your song helped me get through some stuff."
Joan gaped. "Are you serious?"
With a nod, Nomura said, "You have potential, kid. Your technique and skill need work – a lot of work, but you've got sincerity and a great voice. And opera, more than anything, is about emotion – getting that feeling across. Now, you can't hit the highest notes – that you can learn – but… you sure can give a song life, and that's not a talent everyone has. You can do great things… if you want to."
"You… really think so?" Joan said.
Nomura nodded again. "Would take a lot of work though."
"What do I have to do?"
"So, you want to try?"
"I've never wanted anything so much in my life," said Joan. "But… I don't know where to start."
"Well, I… suppose I could help."
Joan stared at the troll.
Nomura gathered her hooves and stood. "I mean – I'm not a singer myself, I just–"
"I would like that. Please." Joan stood up on the wide beam.
Nomura took a deep breath. "All right. I'll see what I can do."
Heedless of the drop below, Joan threw her arms around Nomura as tears ran down her cheeks.
The troll stiffened. "Eh?! Hey! Don't do that!"
"Sorry." Joan let her go.
Nomura patted Joan's head. "It's okay, I'm just not… very good at human things like touching and," she shivered, "kissing, hugging – all that. Count me out."
"Fair enough," Joan said. "I don't really like people touching me either."
Nomura glanced at the digital clock stationed in the orchestra pit. "We need to get back soon. Do you want to go now, or stay for a while?"
"Can we stay – just for a bit?" Joan replied.
Nomura nodded. "Sure."
"Thank you." Joan said as Nomura sat and closed her eyes. Joan did the same, and the pair basked in silence as the moment of bliss filled them.
AN:
To me Wagner's the Valkyrie or "Die Valkyrie." as the original German title is, is in many ways the quintessential opera.
When you think of grand epic operas, with huge ensembles and epic, larger-than-life stories, it is probably a Wagner opera you are thinking about without even realizing it as these are the operas depicting very epic tales with big epic music.
The big ships, people wearing Viking helmets, large casts, the tale being extremely epic about wars and countries and, of course, two people across enemy lines being in love. That's all Wagner for the most part.
In comparison, Mozart operas often have a very modest cast of only five or six people and often lack the more epic storytelling, but tell smaller, more character-based stories. Don Giovanni for instance is just a very simple tale of a man wasting his life drinking and leading pure women astray, then at last when he refuses to repent is dragged to hell.
This also means that Mozart's work tends to be subtler while Wagner is far more grandiose, and while a Mozart production can be small with a moderate small cast, a Wagner production will be simply huge, when done properly that is.
I chose The Valkyrie for Joan to see as it is such a big and epic opera that takes you to a grand fantasy world.
Many other operas do tend to be far more somber with a smaller story scale, ironically, as what I find great about opera is that they can tell larger-than-life stories.
Editted by dtill359