The Manga Flute gets raves!
Princess Pamina in her bedchamber — portrait and backdrop by Megan Willis from the West Edge Opera production of The Manga Flute
The Manga Flute reviews
- “Superb ... bold, outlandish, delectable entertainment ... [Marley’s] libretto is a thing of wonder” — San Francisco Classical Voice
- “Charming ... delightful ... chief among the pleasures is the sleek virtuosity of Marley’s libretto” — San Francisco Chronicle
- “A poetic and fanciful libretto ... surprising in the scope of its originality” — Repeat Performances
Other Manga Flute links
- “Music News” at San Francisco Classical Voice
Praise for David Scott Marley
"Marley has become a favorite of audiences in Berkeley and beyond" — Cheryl North, Oakland Tribune
"Marley is the dexterous wordsmith who last year recast Rossini's 'Italian Girl in Algiers' as a hilarious — and splendidly faithful — sci-fi comic called 'The Riot Grrrl on Mars,' and also has reworked operas by Berlioz and Johann Strauss Jr." — Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle
Opera and operetta adaptations
The Manga Flute (2012)
- Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart from his opera Die Zauberflöte
- A new musical fantasy inspired by the story by Emanuel Schikaneder
- A young stockbroker from Tokyo goes sailing, and an unexpected storm strands him on a strange, magical island. With the help of a bird charmer named Papageno, three prank-playing raccoons, and a silver flute, he sets out on a quest to rescue a princess. But many things on this island are not as they seem, and to complete his journey the young man must discover the truth about the island's history, the flute's magic, and what is truly in his heart.
- The story is inspired by the arts of manga and anime, the sophisticated and fantastical graphic novels and animated films that started in Japan and have become popular around the world.
The Tales of Hoffmann (1999, revised 2009)
- Music by Jacques Offenbach from his opera Les Contes d'Hoffmann
- Adapted from the libretto by xxx
- description to come
The Girl of the Golden West (2006)
- Music by Giacomo Puccini from his opera La Fanciulla del West
- Adapted from the play and novel by David Belasco and the libretto by xxx
- description to come
Carmen (2001)
- Music by Georges Bizet from his opera Carmen
- Adapted from the libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy and the novella by Prosper Mérimée
- description to come
Daughter of the Cabinet (1998)
- Music by Charles LeCoq from his operetta La Fille de Madame Angot
- The queen of Washington society is "Madame Georgetown" herself, the crass but insanely wealthy political benefactor Fanny Cobbler. Fanny hopes to marry off her carefully sheltered 18-year-old daughter to the president's wonkish media consultant. But naive Claretta yearns to escape her mother's control. On a rebellious impulse, she flirts at a party with a charming philanderer -- who is also Washington's most notorious political satirist -- and accidentally sets off a White House sex scandal that could topple the new administration. A bawdy musical satire on sex, Hollywood, the media, morality, American politics, and overprotective motherhood.
The Riot Grrrl on Mars (1997)
- Music by Gioachino Rossini from his opera L'Italiana in Algeri
- Adapted from the libretto by Angelo Anelli
- A riot grrrl — a feisty female punk rocker — flies to Mars in a spaceship made from used car parts, determined to rescue her boyfriend who has been abducted by a UFO. But to free him, she must outwit the tyrannical King of Mars, who craves an Earthling female of his own — just like the wives he's seen on Leave It to Beaver and Father Knows Best. The 18th-century commedia dell'arte farce is retold in sci-fi comic book style.
Bat out of Hell (1996)
- Music by Johann Strauss, Jr., from his operetta Die Fledermaus
- Adapted from the libretto by Carl Haffner and Richard Genée
- A successful dot-com marketing executive, a flaky street poet, and the woman who can't choose between them become entangled in a practical joke that spins out of control. Also involved are a Mexican housemaid posing as an Italian film star, a politically subversive jail warden, and a bratty teenage software billionaire. As Die Fledermaus mocked the foibles of Viennese society in the 1870s, Bat out of Hell pokes fun at life in Berkeley at the height of the dotcom boom.
Beatrice and Benedick (1995)
- Music by Hector Berlioz from his opera Béatrice et Bénedict, with additional music from his opera Benvenuto Cellini
- Adapted from the libretto by Hector Berlioz and the play Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
- Berlioz's wittiest music was written for Shakespeare's wittiest comedy. His rarely performed opera has a sparkling score but a weak libretto. This adaptation strengthens the dramatic structure and restores significant parts of the story of Much Ado that Berlioz left out.