TITLE: Space Opera
AUTHOR: Jack Vance
YEAR: 1965
IS THIS SF?
Yes, aliens come to visit Earth, and likewise, we go to visit them. Technology, spaceships, etc.
PJE SYNOPSIS/TEASER
A meditation on the adage that ‘musical is the universal language’, where the universal part is taken literally. This is paired with the concept that ‘Opera’ is the highest form of High Art, etc. Thus, if we can communicate with aliens, then Opera should be the medium.
REALLY MUSICIANS?
YES-singers sing, instrumentalists instrumentulate, conductors conduct. Complaints are issued regarding singing, playing, costume changing. Feels like real musicians.
WHY MUSICIANS?
To perform the operas. The main characters seem to be the various producers and impresarios, the ones who actually provide and ‘make’ the taste. Thus they are also the ones mainly involved in the debates and cross-world inter-civilization ideas-passing. Of course, the aliens have their own art forms with which they are trying to convey as the universal communicator. Of course nothing works, and in the end a kind of slapstick wins out—lowest common denominator stuff tends to be more universal…
RECOMMENDED?
YES-ish—Funny, witty—there’s not much plot per se, just explorations of the central conceit. It all feels like a gaint set-up for the ending punchline. But fun!