Meet The Books! - The Webs of Venezia, a.k.a. Le Ragnatele Di Venezia

Hello, all! I'm back again with another Meet the Books! feature today. But, before I begin - as always - I will relay what Meet the Books! is. :) Meet the Books! is a blog feature intending to introduce your stories - novels, novellas, plays, operas, whatever they are - to your blog audience. Anyone can join, and the only rules are to answer the questions and link back here in a comment so I can see. :D I love participation, so feel free to take it up for your novels, novellas, plays, operas, etc. And speaking of operas - that is what I'm here today to introduce.

What is the genre?
What?! Why is Belle blogging about an opera?!
I'm sure those are along the lines of what you're thinking. ;) Well, maybe it's because - in addition to my novels and one Broadway musical - I am in the midst of writing an opera (what?! I love writing music!). Two, to be precise, but I'm only talking about one of them today.  So, the genre is a tragic opera (I know, I know - but really, unless you write operas, nobody today gives your writing any leeway to be nice and thoroughly melodramatic!). And, for those random nerd-dork-geniuses in the audience who know what this means, this opera is an opera-comique (in Italian!).
But before anybody stops reading this post because opera isn't their thing, please! - remember that an opera is nothing above you - all an opera is is a novel put to music and a foreign language (and sometimes not even the latter part). Almost all operas are from novels.

What is the title? Time period?
Le Ragnatele Di Venezia - translated as The Webs of Venezia. And the time period is the middle-ish 1800's - a common time period for operas. :)
How is it written (point of view, MC, etc.)?
Well... currently its only finished guise is in synopsis form, but I'm in the midst of writing the libretto (play format) as well. And the main character is a young, middle-class Italian woman named Venezia LaVeirsi (she is the title-role).
Who are the characters?
Haha! Glad you asked! ;D

Venezia LaVeirsi is a vivacious mezzo-soprano Italian girl with a lot of determination (perhaps a bit too much) and a mind as quick as anything. However, she is a bit... off, to say the least. Being incredibly clever and determined does not change the fact that she is rather childishly stubborn and impulsive. But, somehow, this stubborn, world-wise gentlewoman is very best friends with
Caecilia Teresina, another middle-class Italian who, unlike Venezia, is incredibly innocent and quite naïve. Caecilia is not the main character, but a whole lot revolves around her (unbeknownst to her) in the opera. There's really not much to say about her except that, again, she is about as innocent (and absent-minded) as it gets. She is a soprano role.

Salvatore Bena is a foreign tenor gentleman of a soft-spoken nature. He is very quiet, and so not much is really known about what goes on in his head most of the time, which is a frustration to Venezia, who has hoped for ages that he will notice her, and contrived to try and make him. Salvatore often visits the LaVeirsi home at the invitation of his much-respected friend,
Petrarcho LaVeirsi, Venezia's baritone brother. Petrarcho is a rather impulsive and hot-headed man (rather similarly to Venezia), and often needs Salvatore to balance him out. Salvatore is quite devoted to Petrarcho, on account of a time when Petrarcho saved his life (though in a quite undramatic situation, I assure you; Salvatore was about to be absent-mindedly run-over by a horse and cart in the streets).
Pia Toscana is the LaVeirsi maid who has long harbored feelings for Petrarcho. She is the only person who really sees Venezia's character in the right light, but can't really say much, being only a lady's maid. Pia is a coloratura soprano role.
Other than that, the only characters are unnamed, being the chorus members (a.k.a. the Italian citizens).

What does the plot consist of?
You remember how I said earlier that Venezia had a thing for her brother's friend, Salvatore? Well, the opera centers around her designs - her webs, if you will - to try and secure him for herself. However, that is made rather difficult by the fact that Salvatore feels exactly the same way about Caecilia. So... complications ensue. Yes, I know - the melodrama of opera. ;) But it'll sound better put to music (actually, I intend to post the full synopsis shortly, so then you can get more details plot-wise).
What is the setting?
Well, the scenes are these:
-Venezia LaVeirsi's quaint 1800's parlor
-Venezia LaVeirsi's garden
-The grove between Venezia and Caecilia's houses, from which the rest of the city can be seen
-A part of town, where there is an enormous stone stairway and the road leading out of town
And that about covers it. Not a particularly exciting setting, I know, but the music has been sheer ecstasy to write. :)
Who are the favorite characters so far?
Um... not Venezia...? :P Well, my favorite character to write in it is Salvatore, but no reader has made much comment except to bemoan the ending or comment on the little bit of music that there is.

What is the favorite scene so far?
So far, a scene in the beginning where Salvatore thinks aloud by himself (singing my favorite of his arias so far, E Cos'e Questo...? - translating to And What is This...?).
Any themes of music for this work?
Well, song-wise, I have a pretty good amount composed.
E Cos'e Questo...? (And What is This...?) - a tenor aria for Salvatore with brief parts for Venezia and Caecilia, from Act One.
Nessuna Canzone! (No Song I Can Sing!) - a soprano aria for Caecilia in Act Four, the final act.
Petrarcho? Che Dolce Compagna (Petrarcho? What Sweet Company) - a soprano/baritone duet for Caecilia and Petrarcho in Act Two.
Frantumi Sono Mie Speranze! (Shattered Are My Hopes!) - a mezzo-soprano aria for Venezia in Act Three or Four.
Il Suo Tocco (Her Touch) - a tenor aria for Salvatore... which currently only has prototype lyrics and no melody yet. Possibly for Act Four.
Rosa, Dolce Rosa (Rose, Sweet Rose) - a baritone aria for Petrarcho that I am soon going to tamper with and make into a baritone/soprano/mezzo-soprano/soprano quartet for Petrarcho, Caecilia, Venezia, and Pia in Act Two or Three.
Dire, Quindi, Se Si (Tell, Then, If You Will) - a soprano/mezzo-soprano duet for Caecilia and Venezia in Act One.
And the flourishing main theme of the opera which was my most rewarding and first labor in this work (in fact, I'm still not sure whether it or the opera came first),
Amore, Piu Semplice! (Love, Most Simple!) - a mezzo-soprano aria for Venezia which is carried on throughout the opera, but is first heard in the last part of Act One.
Phew! But that's all of them so far (I know, I know - give me a break! I've only been working on this opera for a year this coming February, after all! I'll compose more music sooner or later). But, soon enough, a professional *cough cough actually just a training professional cough* opera singer will sing it for me, and then I will broadcast it all over the world! Just kidding. But I might post it on this blog. ;)
Any drawings?
Yes! I have here a drawing of Caecilia and Petrarcho in the grove between the LaVeirsi and Teresina homes. It took a while, and unfortunately Petrarcho looks rather wimpy, but at least Caecilia turned out really well. :P

This is the as of yet uncolored scene that goes with the song Nessuna Canzone!... and Petrarcho looks like he has a bad headache. :P

Any snippets?
Not this time. Like I said before, soon I'll post the full synopsis of it (and you can all roll your eyes all you want - this is an opera!). Hopefully it will be sometimes in the next few posts.
Strong point in story?
The musical themes. I feel like the main theme and sub theme (Amore, Piu Semplice! and E Cos'e Questo...?) are coming through really well, and as soon as I research some more (and by 'research', I mean listen to a ton of opera - yay, research!;), I will write some of the orchestration and accompaniment - seeing as, up to this point, I have written only vocal music.
Weak point in story?
Probably the libretto. It's going very slowly, and seeing as Italian is not my first language, I'm not exactly Verdi when it comes to writing lyrics and speech.
What are your plans for it?
To finish it, edit it, re-edit it, and then try and get it out. First, I plan to have my undercover assistant (a.k.a. my best friend who is currently studying abroad for an operatic vocal career, and whom I mentioned earlier) help me in the underground by getting bits of it sung at recitals and things. Then, I will have it performed in larger and larger bits informally, until - bam! - there it is on stage, the full thing. Then, everybody appreciates my genius so much that it is one of the most popular operas since La Boheme I hope and pray that it gets performed professionally and takes off. :)
Any particular writing habits for it?
Well, the whole thing - synopsis and the little bit of libretto that there is - is all written in a big, purple notebook that has a honeybee sticker on it. And I always sit at my little cupboard piano when I'm composing the music (believe me, the name 'cupboard piano' makes it sound small - it's deceiving). I almost always drink coffee, though, when I'm composing.

The unforgettably great (and incredibly handsome) tenor, David Miller.

If it were made into a movie, what would be your ideal cast?
I hope it is made into a movie someday. But, in the meantime... I can't imagine anybody but Angela Georghiu playing Caecilia for some reason (which... is bad for this opera's movie, because Angela Georghiu was performing back in the 90's). And it's the same case for Salvatore - can't see anyone but David Miller playing him (which may be because I see Mr. Miller as the ideal tenor for every opera role...?). I would pick Luca Pisaroni or Thomas Weinhappel as Petrarcho, Beverly Sills as Pia, and either the great Cecelia Bartoli or Maria Callas as the title role of Venezia (again, bad for the movie, because those two were performing in the 80's and 60's unfortunately...). :P
What do you think? Would you go and see it? Would you listen to it? Is the plot melodramatic enough for an opera, or will you have to wait and see the synopsis (which I will post shortly)? Chat with me! :)