Ru
EnA. Krylova
In search of new formats: opera-quest
The article is devoted to the study of the oncoming movement of two genres belonging to different cultural locations – a quest born in the depths of mass culture and opera – the brainchild of an elite culture. The development of technology has always had an impact on the opera genre, resulting in the emergence of many varieties – radio opera, film adaptation, operatic tele- and videoformats, etc. The Internet has become a platform for experiments in the field of media operas. The passion for computer games also could not help but have an impact on opera, which resulted in a tendency for it to become closer to quests. Based on the etymology of the word “quest,” the article touches on the history of the phenomenon, the reasons for its actualization in culture, and identifies points of possible convergence with opera. On this basis, the author examined different options for this kind of collaboration, tested in practice. The investigation area includes excursions in the quest format carried out by theater and concert organizations, the principles of quest construction of opera librettos, the introduction of classical opera text into the “body” of a computer game with the interaction of polar semantic fields based on new technical capabilities. Also in the author’s field of vision are experiments with introducing the features of opera into a multimedia game format, an opera quest as a combination of stage and multimedia resources, and a theatrical production version of an opera quest. In the latter case, this is no longer a tour of the theater, but movement through theater locations in accordance with the tasks and plot of the musical quest. In conclusion, the main vectors of rapprochement between opera and quest are formulated, some key features of the emerging genre variety are highlighted, and prospects are predicted based on the interdisciplinary nature of the quest opera.
Key words
opera, quest, musical multimedia, music in computer games, experimental art.
For citation
Krylova A. In search of new formats: opera-quest // South-Russian Musical Anthology. 2024. No. 1. Pp. 100-108.
