Dangerous Liaisons the Musical
"Dangerous Liaisons is a story of intrigue, of the perilous games played between people when desires
are supressed and motives concealed. The characters of the story are extreamely passionate, yet exist in a time when passions
were not to be openly expressed. What happens to a person who is denied their passions? In Dangerous Liaisons, the characters
must resort to their hidden games, games that lead to a spider web of relationships pulled taught by unspoken tensions."
- Johnathan Daniel Steppe
"Dangerous Liaisons is a classic French novel, from which several film versions
and stage plays have sprung, even an opera a few years back. Its melodramatic nature cries out to be set to music. The nature
of the story, the characters, and the complexities of the plot demand the grittier performance, faster pace and flexibilities
that are afforded in a musical, that you just can't pull off as well in pure opera. Ours, although classically flavored, is
a Broadway-styled, professional-calibre, large-scale musical. It is a tragedy, and deals with adult topics, confronting gender
equality, faith and fidelity, social corruption, and the importance of recognizing the genuine humanity within ourselves,
as opposed to 'putting it on' for our own gain."
- Malcolm Caluori
From composer Malcolm Caluori, with libretto by Johnathan Daniel Steppe, the high art and irresistibility
of opera meet the immediacy and mass accessibility of musical theatre in a balance perfectly struck for one of Western literature's
most inextinguishable and gripping tales. The immediate popularity, scandal and overwhelming success of Pierre Choderlos de
Laclos' 1782 novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses has since led to a proliferation of innumerable derivations
of the work, in all genres. And yet, despite the novel's seductive antihero and his wicked, domineering counterpart, its extreme
emotions, brilliant comedy and high melodramatic tragedy, no opera or musical based on the lurid classic has been itself called
a classic. Until now.
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| Laclos |
Caluori's dramatic instinct and masterful musical expression informs
a score that parallels grand opera. But as a melodist, and in his setting of the text of Steppe's sharp and loyal, episodic
libretto, he betrays the deep love and ties to the musical theatre shared by both collaborators. The resulting combination
brings a vibrancy to the characters and a unique theatrical thrill to their circumstances, establishing the work as the definitive
musical dramatization of the story.
For in-depth details on Dangerous Liaisons, click the links below.
The Complete
Original Concept Recording of Dangerous Liaisons is available now on Melpomene Records in our online store.
