It was you all along

I love it when I get to a certain point in writing a musical when the music itself gets caught up in my head and I go about humming it rather stupidly in the most inappropriate places (aka, Bearskin in Walmart). I have the finale "Do Not Turn From Me" from Thrushbeard in my head now - all the swelling music, the ecstatic harmony, the image of the characters and the lighting and the set and hopefully the tears on people's faces (good tears, good tears). Heavens, though, I am Bazish today! Good thing, I suppose?

So, as I was attempting to cajole myself to sleep last night/this morning (yes, yes, I know - but it wasn't TOO late!), I was pondering (with the Brain?) whether Thrushbeard is according to the guy I linked to below a "musical" or an "opera." (I put them in quotes because I don't fully buy his distinction based on worldview more than obvious music (& style)/book length proportion.) Thrushbeard would be accounted by him a musical because it has a certain jaded, worldweariness, it has class consciousness and an obvious sympathy with the middle class more than members of the opulent oligarchy, it has the requisite secondary parallel plot of members of social inferiority.... But, operatically, its villain is a really bad villain (doing double duty as Frederick's evil half/devil on my shoulder/sinister voice of doubt inside/etc.), the stakes are heroic and high, they do end up as King and Queen at the end, everything for our heroes is higher and nobler. Can it be that this is a hybrid of the two? That it begins as a musical and ends as an opera? At least, according to this fellow's standards. By sheer proportion of music to book, it's a musical, hands-down. It even has (mostly) hummable tunes. But then, so does Puccini.... Anywho, it's an interesting academic exercize, even if it's not conducive to sleeping immediately.

Now off to voice lessons and to make my school room more habitable! Good Heavens, is it Friday already?

Mood: Wet. And itchy. Yes, that's a mood.
Music: What else? The ubiquitous playlist!
Thought: I like the word ubiquitous....