So I have an idea for a story, or novel, or whatever it turns out to be - basically it's about a performance of the Phantom of the Opera, the main character acts Christine Daae, and is in a similar love triangle to Christine in her real life. I'm a drama fanatic, it was my best subject at school, and I want to incorporate it into my writing. My real question is this: how much is too much about the performance, are quotes and whole scenes from the performance too unnecessary? How do I find the balance between acting and the characters' real lives? Thanks in advance xx
One of the things I do when trying to decide something like this is to remember that a story is about change and how people are affected by it. At the beginning of your scenario while you're introducing the characters/setting, I would not quote much, simply because those interested either already know or can watch Phantom. The times I would focus on the content of the play is if your MC is struggling through life, affecting her performance. Experiencing her struggling through lines can show the impact of whatever's happening in her real life. To QC what you've done, just read through it. If you start glossing over lines of the play either because it doesn't matter or you already know them (unless they're important to the story), cut it. :shrug: Just my two cents.
Include only as much of the performance as you absolutely need to serve the purpose of your story, and no more. This is the kind of situation in which it is easy for your love of the play to engulf your story, much to the annoyance of the reader. One of Rogers and Hammerstein's less known musicals, "Me and Juliet", did this, and so did the more recent (and more successful) "Curtains" (book by Rupert Holmes). But in both cases, the show used for the setting was fictional.
When I read this thread, the first thing that I thought of was "Sonny's Blues" by James Baldwin. This may or may not help you. But it is a fantastic short story, and Baldwin does a great job describing the musical performance Sonny has in the story.
