Thread: Tempt's HISTORICAL Thread ~ Vikings/Renaissance/WWII+ *NEW: FairyTales* Updated:02/27

RE POST 9 The 19th Century Art, Theatre, and Opera INTRODUCTION CONCEPT I'm looking to explore what is known as the long 19th century, which outlines time periods occurring during andor after the INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION . Some of the eras periods I am looking to potential incorporate are the following - Georgian era United Kingdom, 1714 1830 - Romantic era 1770 1850 - Napoleonic era 1799 1815 - Victorian era United Kingdom, 1837 1901 BONUS - Phantom of the Opera - The Golden Age of Geisha 1800s Japan The concept is to choose an appropriate timeline from above, and to center the roleplay and our two characters in a MASQUERADE Masked Ball. The entire premise of the story will BEGIN andor revolve around a lavish, high-strung and high-class social event, coupled with extravagant performances and costumes. I'm looking to make this concept quite theatrical, and would like to heavily focus on Arts Theatre, as this was an important sources of entertainment and talent throughout this period especially for those in an upper social hierarchy. Performance types I'm looking to include are i Theatreplays, Opera, Ballet, Circus, and Tango . Additionally, I am fully open to the idea of taking HISTORICAL LIBERTIES in terms of the revolution, costume design, and social conflict. We can be as liberal as we agree to be, incorporating different creative freedoms in order to best fabricate an engaging story! That being said, I would like to include a blend of both swordsmanship and pistols guns to add flare and drama. I am also open to including steam-powered automotive vehicles late 1800s on top of horse-drawn buggiescarriages. I've taken a big source of inspiration from the musical, play and film, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA . I am open to using the storyline of the Phantom, so if you are interested in playing his character or a variation of it, I am more than willing! About the Phantom and his Opera An architect and designer, a composer and magician. He's a genius who must hide his facial disfigurement behind a mask and in the catacombs beneath Paris's Opera Populaire, known only as the Phantom of the Opera or Opera Ghost. In the film, his backstory is a sad one. Born disfigured or perhaps disfigured from abuseburns, he is made a circus freak as a child by cruel gypsies, who continue to abuse him. A visiting circus customer and child ballerina at the time, Madame Giry, witnesses the Phantom retaliate against his slave master and murder him. Rather than run away, she decides to help him escape capture of officials. She brings him into the catacombs of the Paris Opera House. From that point on, the Phantom devolves the catacombs into an embellished architectural masterpiece and sanctuary, completely hidden and guarded from the public. However, his underground empire is connected directly to the Opera House, which he spent years and years constructing booby traps, mazes, and hidden paths within the Opera, that only he knows how to navigate. In the film, he is in love with a chorus vocalist named Christine who he musically trains to become a talented soprano. Despite this convoluted romance, in which she struggles between her love for her childhood friend and her infatuation with the Phantom, I am NOT looking to include this storyline whatsoever. It currently doesn't interest me, however I am still craving his particular character without all the other drama. Additionally, in the play, the Phantom is supposedly disfigured from birth, however if you prefer, you can choose whathow he is disfigured. I will also consider not having him disfigured at all, but more, just a borderline psychopath and creative genius. I'm open for discussion! I will also link the film's Overture , in which you can get an idea of the Opera House. Geisha are traditional, female Japanese entertainers of the Flower and Willow World, shrouded in secrecy and mystery. Geisha skills include performing various ancient Japanese arts regarding music, song, dance, tea ceremony, calligraphy, flower arranging, poetry and the art of conversation. In Japan, geisha are the ultimate hostess and class of entertainment. Geisha are hailed as the very icons of Japanese social grace and etiquette. History of Geisha in Japan The 19th century marked what many refer to as the Golden Age of Geisha, where the art of entertaining was at its ultimate and most extravagant peak. Being a Geisha or a Maiko apprentice to a Geisha was seen as not only a honorable title but also as a successful and reputable career. Geishas were considered the highest, most wealthy form of entertainment, being used for their beauty, Japanese glam fashion and their artistic talent. Geishas were single women, unable to marry without retiring. At this time, Geisha's began training at a very, very young age. Commencing the beginning of what would become a favorable employment between the ages of just 3 and 5 years old. Raised in a specific house for training future Maikos and Geishas, these female children would be trained in the ways of entertaining, serving, and socializing, which included musical instrument training, singing and dance lessons, and the art of service such as serving tea. A successful Geisha was known to be highly sociable, alluring, and talented. Despite controversial beliefs, Geisha's were in fact not prostitutes. Although it was not uncommon for Geishas to offer sexual services and engage in personal relations with their clients, it was at their own volition and not standard requirement. Similarly, many Geisha took on a primary male client known as a danna . A danna was typically a wealthy man, sometimes married, who had the means to support the very large expenses related to a geisha's traditional clothing, training and other costs. As featured in the book and film Memoirs of a Geisha, research has been conflicting on whether or not Maikos became Geishas after having their virginities auctioned off and lost to the highest bidder. Although sources have been inconsistent, it seems that the process and ceremony of the danna or patron taking the virginity of the Maiko was known as mizuage. The mizuage is something we can choose to incorporate or exclude. Miyako, Miyako Name Geisha Miyako Age 18-21 Status Geisha Religion Shinto Short Bio Miyako is a prestigious and famous Geisha in Japan. She is known as one of the most beautiful and talented Geishas, popularized primarily for her enthralling dance. Aside from her status as a Geisha, I will leave her bio open for discussion. Roleplay Ideas An idea we can explore is Miyako having widely famed danna, Orochi Oshiro-san Mr. Oshiro. Miyako's patron is known throughout Japan as one of the most successful and wealthy businessmen in the entire country, working to cement trading ties between Japan and the United States of America. If we want to tie this in with a masked ball or masquerade, perhaps Mr. Oshiro is invited to America in order to further discuss trade deals and he chooses to take along with him his Geisha who Americans mistakenlydishonorably refer to as a concubine. Another option we could explore is having some sort of masked Japanese ball which I don't think ever really existed, but maybe we can creatively pretend Japan was hosting one for their foreign guests?. A third option is to keep it classic and simple by having foreign businessmenpoliticiansmilitary men in Tokyo, Japan, at a traditionally Japanese party where Geishas are the primary source of entertainment. In this third option, there would be no masks. In any of these three options, you can play either an American foreigner or even fulfill the role of Oshiro feel free to modifychange his character, as well to make this a romance between Geisha and her patron. A fourth option is I can reduce Miyako's title to MAIKO instead of Geisha, which would render her potentially virginal, still acting as an apprentice to a Geisha. There are a LOT of possibilities for this storyline, and I am equally open to any of your own ideas! Send them to me and we can discuss.