The Telephone, a one-act opera by Gian Carlo Menotti (1911 -2007) tells the delightfully simple story of Ben who tries to propose marriage to Lucy, but is constantly interrupted by the telephone ringing (which is played in the orchestra by the piano.) Eventually he gives up, leaves her apartment, and calls her on the phone to propose. She happily agrees and the opera ends as the clarinet plays a "dial tone."

Kurt Weill (1900 - 1950) composed Street Scene to reflect the diverse personalities and cultures living together in New York City. The whole opera takes place on the front steps of a tenement house, with neighbors going about their daily business and peering out windows for a bit of gossip. Act Two opens as children play and sing "One, Two, Three, for Superman, come and catch me if you can."

In the early 1950's, Leonard Bernstein (1918 - 1990) wanted to compose an opera about America's interest in new cars, high-tech appliances and houses in the suburbs. The result was Trouble in Tahiti, about a married couple, Sam and Dinah, who can't manage to find happiness even though they have everything they could buy. The opera starts at breakfast and takes us through their day - to the office, a store, the gym and the psychiatrist. In one of the few funny moments of the show, Dinah retells the story of the movie she has just seen, Trouble In Tahiti, and gets swept away in the romance of the story.

Something to think about...

If you were to compose an opera about your life, who do you know that would make a great comic character? Who would make a great tragic character? What sounds do you hear every day that could be turned into music?