12) "Prima Donna"--scene summary

[honeyphan]

The Hidden Plot


*****SUMMARY OF PRIMA DONNA*****

Paragraph summary: While everyone appears to be giving Carlotta praise, M. Giry and others warn of the dangers if they do not follow the King. Raoul comes right out and says he does not want Christine to be Countess but wants her to play a silent role, a strong clue that he was never her Count, since he never did become a Count.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biPu62L8s6o

**Many think the following song is really about Christine in the hidden plot. Except for a couple of lines, I agree, especially since that man made it a point to ask for Miss Daae. And I never heard them cry for Carlotta. Notice the table is again covered with a pink cloth—the red fan is on it, but again, no chair.

ALL: “Prima donna first lady of the stage! Your devotees are on their knees to implore you! Can you bow out when they're shouting your name? Think of how they all adore you! Prima donna, enchant us once again! Think of your muse...And of the queues round the theatre! Can you deny us the triumph in store? Sing, prima donna, once more!”

**Notice how the dressing room has undergone another change -and it's all pink again.

Now we see what Carlotta was standing on—and it is not a stair. (remember, in Little Lotte, The Mirror, and Meg/dressing room -they all go up stairs -which appear not to be there - the invisible stairs a clue that the kingdom to which Erik is a king is also invisible, perhaps -a realm of music. Just a thought.) What Carlotta is standing on is a cushioned small box of sorts, to elevate her so they could tie her corset. Again, there appears to be no physical stairs there. When her servants are walking through and all over the room to gather things, etc, they never step up or down.

(I noticed pic is missing- I'll get another up soon!)


RAOUL: “Christine spoke of an angel ...”

Watch Raoul’s expression and also watch the way he sings this as he stands in the chapel. It’s as if a memory is trying to resurface. I believe he was susceptible to Angel of Music in his childhood, and was nervous about it when Christine spoke in her dressing room, though he sloughed it off—he was anxious to get her out of there, and he’d just brought champagne. Champagne that he never opened. By the way he sings this line, it’s as if the reality of the existence of the Angel of Music is trying to reach him. His face has a curious, studied expression, as if a memory—or revelation—is on the fringes of his mind. . .
There is a visible ray of flickering yellow light touching his ear (you can see it much better on the movie)—one sleuther found that “yellow” in light--was reminiscent of light, but also showed one who was going through a conflicting time, as if trying to make a decision. See pic below:



All: ”Those who hear your voice liken you to an angel!” (This also sounds as if it refers to Christine since Erik called her his Angel of Music, and Raoul in Little Lotte said "You sang like an Angel tonight.)

CARLOTTA: “Prima Donna your song shall live again, you took a snub, but there's a public who needs you.”

M. GIRY: “She has heard the voice of the angel of music”

M. Giry knew the Angel of Music was Christine’s teacher, and has visited her for nine years. Yet she seems troubled as she sings this. For the first time Christine really knows who Music is; has seen him/ been with him. And that one night, by her own admission, he made her spirit soar. Yet because of all that’s going on, I think M. Giry fears for Christine.

RAOUL: “Orders! Warnings! Lunatic demands!”

Raoul storms from the chapel, putting aside any faint knowledge of Angel’s existence that pricked at him, instead choosing to be “rational”—IOW, refusing to give in to any childhood memory, instead putting it behind him and acting the part of a responsible adult in control of the opera house. Notice the trapped ray of white light shooting from the basket—perhaps showing that Raoul has trapped the light and has now decided on his own agenda.



RAOUL: “I must see these demands are rejected!” (He’s going against the king and the king’s demands.)

Notice in the background—where there have always been servants with powdered wigs and blue ribbons (and there are still some in red coats standing by the door)—there are now also armed soldiers, standing guard like those in a king's palace. This is midday- the opera house is empty except for those who live there. These aren't the soldiers with guns Raoul later employed - their helmets/costumes/swords show they are a ROYAL guard. Four are off to the right side. With one in the middle, his sword apparent, and then two off to the left. This seems another clue that there is an actual king there- Erik. And they are wearing HIS color- red (and a very dark green - Christine- or perhaps black- hard to tell)- so these are soldiers there to protect the king and his kingdom.

And Raoul is declaring war.




FIRMIN and ANDRE: “Who'd believe a diva happy to relieve a chorus girl, who's gone and slept with the patron?

ALL at the opera house have questionable lifestyles, so why single Christine out? Carlotta had her eye on Raoul at beginning too. I think it's because they don't acknowledge Christine as intended queen -but as a commoner -and instead, they aim to please Carlotta, who only wants to be queen, meaning sole ruler of the OP.

FIRMIN and ANDRE: "Raoul and the soubrette, entwined in love's duet!
Although he may demur, he must have been with her! You'd never get away with all this in a play, but if it's loudly sung and in a foreign tongue. . ."

One sleuther said—“A play has to be believable ('you'll never get away with all this in a play'), but, an opera, usually in a foreign tongue, is known for sad or tragic endings. Drama, tragedy, deaths, fantasy, betrayal etc etc. Also, in the foreign subtitles- entirely different stories seem to be told- all in favor of E/C - "just the sort of story audiences adore...".

FIRMIN and ANDRE: “It's just the sort of story audiences adore, in fact a perfect opera!”

Based on the above, this sounds as if the directors know the idea of Christine & Raoul together will end in tragedy—but since they are shown as greedy and heartless, they wouldn’t care if it ended badly for either of them. They don’t realize, though that by encouraging their relationship they are bringing the axe down on their own heads.

M. GIRY & MEG: “For if his curse is on this opera”. . .

Look to your left. A weird gold statue face with a black wig appears to be grimacing—eyes can’t be seen. When we see this corridor again in WHABB, the statue doesn’t show. When they pass those tall gold twist columns on either side is how you can tell this. A lot of statues in this story appear at the oddest times, as if spying. . .Christine looks sad, probably because of fear due to what they are singing, and her own bittersweet memory of what happened in the King’s lair. Also, at this point, I think the Phantom has started to get into her mind—not Erik, the Angel of Music. Just my thoughts.
A black wig is also symbolic of a "covering" - glory and protection- and in this case, the Phantom spirit, as I'll show later...

M. Giry (in Companion book) sings "for if his curse is on THE opera" -and Meg sings "But if his curse is on THIS opera"

Two different things there -otherwise, why state them differently? M. Giry knows Angel as king. She is saying if Christine and Raoul got together, as directors think would make a perfect opera, That the Phantom/Angel’s curse will be on that idea of their "opera." The owners are the fools thinking they can go along with their 'opera', no matter the cost, and Giry is the messenger, saying, “no, if you do--it's cursed because we’ll all suffer.” Meg knows only the Opera Ghost -Phantom of the Opera -she sees only what is going on in the present, and is afraid of what might happen because of the miscasting.

We look at lyrics from other sources to help us better understand who these people are and any backstory that’s missing. We found this in ALW’s stage play lyrics:

MEG "Is this ghost...an angel or a madman . . .?" (Again they took out the word “ghost”-- another word for “Phantom”--in film version.)

GIRY: "Heaven help you, those who doubt . . .This miscasting will invite damnation.. . .Oh fools, to have flouted his warnings! Think, before these demands are rejected!"

(She serves the king; he will be displeased, and she knows this will cause big problems for all of them.)

MEG: "Bliss or damnation? Which has claimed her . . .?" (As if questioning her fascination with Angel. She asks is it all good -or is there evil involved, as in he Phantom spirit’s control)

RAOUL: "Surely, for her sake . . .I must see these demands are rejected!"

It's odd he would think it would be "for Christine's sake" that she not play the lead and instead play "the silent role" This could be more foreshadowing about him against her being an actual Countess to Erik later on—his wife. Raoul’s not concerned about her being in the play—if so, she wouldn’t have been in it—he’s concerned that she play the Countess.

MEG: "Surely he'll strike back . . .if his threats and demands are rejected!"

I think Meg acquaints this with the Opera Ghost. I'm still not sure she knows of the Angel of Music yet, though I feel she knows there is a ruler over them all.

MEG/RAOUL: "Christine must be protected!"

How is it "protecting her" by not allowing her to play the lead? After all, she'll still be ON the stage. Again, I feel it's partly foreshadowing—for Raoul, because of words he just spoke—that Christine not become the Countess. For Meg and the words she just spoke, that Christine be protected from evil. At this point, Raoul denies a phantom or an angel (king).

RAOUL "His game is over! And in Box Five a new game will begin ..."

interesting reference to Box 5...I take this to mean Raoul saying he's in control now, since he considers Box 5 to be his box, as the new patron there. The number 5 points to E/C relationship, so perhaps this is also clue that he intends to break that up and step in as Christine's new love interest.

GIRY: "This is a game you cannot hope to win! For, if his curse is on this opera ...then I fear the outcome ...should you dare to . .

RAOUL: "Christine plays the Pageboy, Carlotta plays the Countess ..."

Here, Raoul makes the decision--again, how can this help Christine in her desire to be an opera star? It’s almost as if Raoul doesn’t want her career to progress. If it's about fearing her being in the opera, again why not just take her out of it completely? The fact that the Pageboy is silent might have a great deal to do with all this (it actually has double meaning for the person it symbolizes in opera, more on that later). But to Raoul, since Angel sings through her as is said in POTO -perhaps Raoul senses this now (he did cry out “Bravo,” though he mouthed “brava!” And he just seemed to remember about the Angel of Music in the chapel—which could be another reason he wants her to stay quiet.) Also, again, here he flat out says he doesn't want Christine in the role of Countess. I see no logical explanation for this—except as a clue, meaning he did not want her to be the actual Countess she became at end of movie -because Raoul was never a Count.

ALL: "... when you once again ...Light up the stage with that age old rapport! Sing Prima Donna once more!”

We think the “once more” could also be a clue to look more deeply into what is really being said in this song. Also, if you look at it technically, this was Carlotta’s final time to sing lead—her “once more.”

Here are two pictures of a statue that don’t seem to fit with an opera about an unfaithful countess and her lover. I have arrows pointing to the cupids (?) and the woman. One child appears to be hanging onto her back. The others are around her feet. We dont' know what this cutout or statue is of yet. Also, note that Carlotta has four black tattoo markings on her shoulder. This is important.





OCC lyrics (stage play)

While I believe that the play (stage show) and movie are different from one another, as far as the hidden plot involved, I did find this interesting, so maybe there is more likeness than I thought...

RAOUL: Christine spoke of an angel...Is this her Angel of Music...? (Because of what he just said, this is him coming right out and almost admitting that such a thing as AOM exists.)

MEG: "Voice of hell, or of heaven... Bliss or damnation Which has claimed her...?" (a bit more explicit and out there in this OCC version -as if to say is the power Christine listens to evil or is it good? By saying "claimed her" means it controls her/owns her.)

PIANGI: "Surely heads will roll" (a statement associated with rulers in power, such as kings) "If his threats and demands are rejected.. ."

Piangi seems to sense that something bad will happen and is acknowledging Erik as king.

PIANGI AND MME GIRY: "Honour must be protected!"

Honour is "great respect given because of high rank, etc." Again, this sounds as if they are BOTH saying the king should have final say. That Piangi said this sounds as if he knows it's unwise to cross the king. Which means he must know him as king. M. Giry shows she is loyal to the Angel King.

PIANGI: "Their game is over!" (Their" makes it sound like those who support Carlotta, especially since his words above are clear he’s on the side of the king. It’s as if to say Piangi knows that by doing this, they've already lost since the King is in control here and will seek vengeance.)

PHANTOM: "So, it is to be war between us! If these demands are not met, a disaster beyond your imagination will occur!

They showed part of this in Notes, but here they also show that the "war" is between him and opera house, as well as between him and Christine and Raoul later on. Which makes sense because of what he does in cutting down the chandelier.


**COMPANION BOOK CLUES**

On p. 98, companion book shows a swatch of Carlotta’s pink countess gown—to the left it’s the color it was in film. The main part of it shows it as faded—and the trim to have yellowed. One member thought--Since pink seems to point to pride and the material is pink, could this mean pride will fade from Christine when she becomes the Countess (not in the play, but in reality)? Since the song is really for/about Christine, this could be, but I also think it is showing that Carlotta’s day is reaching an end. Also, in Little Lotte-- Raoul sings "...or of riddles or frocks"—but companion book says, "...or of riddles, of frocks"

I feel this is a clue that the frocks--another word for dresses -in the story are actually riddles to us to help solve POTO hidden plot. In TOM, the dress was a clue, and in Masquerade, the dress was also a clue. We feel this dress means more, but haven’t found the deeper meaning yet. More later, when we do.

P. 101—A shadowy figure lurks in background that was not in film. It appears to have something like a halo over its head. Four tattoos are on Carlotta’s shoulder. (This is important to remember for next scene.)


**SPANISH SUBTITLE TRANSLATIONS by PMA and Promiseme**

(Some of these lines may be out of order)

Andre: Can you bow out when they're shouting your name
Oh, How they will respond with scorn!

from honey—seems like a completely different line

Carlotta: Primadonna your song shall never die, you'll sing again, and to unending ovation
When she sings, she moves(emotionally), sing once more and the applause will be eternal

Andre/Firmin:
Those who hear your voice liken you to an angel
Those who heard your voice think it is an angel

Raoul and the soubrette entwined in a loves duet.
She's very fortunate and never more abandoned
Raoul and her friend get along very well

(from honey—this is very interesting—they are saying that Raoul and Christine’s friend get along very well—Erik and Raoul? The Phantom and Raoul? Meg and Raoul? Whatever it is, they are saying she’s fortunate—to win the attention of an aristocrat—but never more abandoned, never more alone. These words show that Raoul has his own interest at heart. And I think this is where he started to change from his objective as being a savior to the people at the OP and wanting Christine all to himself and getting rid of the king, and to hell with the consequences. My own thoughts.)

You'd never get away with all this in a play
You can't avoid that this should happen

But if it's loudly sung and in a foreign tongue
Let's not speak of this but afterwards

It's just the sort of story audiences adore, in fact a perfect opera
If it's sung like a popular story, then it will become more well-known

Mm. Giry, C, and Meg:
For if is his curse is on the opera
His disgrace is this opera

From honey -One is saying he’ll bring a curse on it, the other is saying he will be humiliated by it and it will bring shame upon him. For them to be in favor of Raoul stealing the king’s intended queen is shameful to her and others.

Can you bow out when they're shouting your name?
Oh, how they will respond with scorn!

Think of how they all adore you
Your voice being the one I adore

Think of your muse...And of the queues round the theatre!
It is worth twice more...That passion of your people

Raoul

Orders!Warnings!
He gives his orders, and his every whim is obeyed as the law

Andre/Firmin

Lunatic demands! Lunatic demands are regular occurrences!
His every whim is law, and each day the same thing happens

From honey—Raoul says his every whim is obeyed like law, the managers say it IS law. A hint to Erik being a king.

About that line:
Raoul and her friend get a long well, another translation for that sentence I found is,
Raoul and her friend make good crumbs, which is a Spanish expression equivalent to the English, "They're like two peas in a pod."


**SOUND SIMILARITIES by Redrose**

Prima Donna
Unique


**MUSICAL ANALYSIS by Phantom’s Star**

Note: I think this is what the sounds stand for.
Flute: a calling
Harp: thinking of Angel (Angel of Music)
Cymbals: Angel is there, or near (brush of cymbals)—loud crash—he is fully there.

1.)Harp – during the line “Prima Donna, first lady of the stage” – is the real first lady of the stage Christine since she is also consider the Angel of Music according to Angel? I think this might be further proof.

2.)Flute – after “Your devotees are on their knees to implore you” and “Can you bow out when they’re shouting your name.” The audience is calling to Carlotta according to Andre and Firmin.

3.)Harp – after “Think of how they all adore you” and before “Prima Donna, enchant us once again” – is the Angel of Music the one that everyone adores because he enchanted them with his music through Christine?

4.)Raoul sings, “I must see these demands are rejected” – we hear the brushing of the cymbals. Angel is near and hears this? Maybe that’s why he switches Carlotta’s bottle (part of his plan after he knew his demands would be rejected according to Raoul)?

5.)Harp – “For if his curse is on the opera” – brushing of harp strings beginning after the word “curse” – Christine looks sad in this shot, without question I think . The sound of the harp is further proof that the reason she is sad is because she’s thinking of her Angel of Music and missing him. We know that the harp refers to her thinking of him from further proof in AOM and MOTN, and even I remember. M. Giry and Meg could also be thinking of the Angel of Music because the lines they say include “his”; and “his” would refer to Angel.

6.)Harp – after “a nation waits and how it hates to be cheated” – brushing of the harp strings – a nation waits for Angel’s music to be shared with the world? (As we know he wants to do from NWL)

7.)“Once more – crashing of cymbals – Angel has to be there listening to them. He knows that they are not following his orders, which leads him to rely on the Phantom’s spirit and come up with a plan to show them that he is in charge.


LINK TO "IL MUTO":

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