Download IX - McMurry University

THE WAR WHOOP,
Vol. 79 – Issue IX
Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2003
By ELAINE DISPO
Staff Writer
How could one conspire one’s demise then fail at his own?
Thus is the case with Italian court composer Antonio Salieri, who plans the destruction of German
prodigy, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, in Amadeus, by playwright Peter Shaffer.
Directed by Philip Craik, McMurry theatre department chair, Ryan Little Theatre showcased the
production on Feb. 13-15 and Feb. 20-22, at 7:30 p.m., with an optional dinner held an hour prior to curtain
call.
Andrew Calucag delivered a powerful performance from start to finish, as Salieri. Calucag
presented his character in such a vindictive way that the audience loved to hate his evil, vile yet tortured
spirit. Like many other composers during the 16th and 17th centuries, Salieri pursued opportunity in
Vienna, Austria, the “City of Musicians” - or, rather, the “City of Scandal?”
Zach Gleason brought in charm and wit as Mozart, who was just as much a ladies’ man as he was
a musical genius possessing God-given gifts - hence the meaning of his middle name, also the title of the
play. In fact, he won over the heart of Constanze Weber (Ashley Phillips) through mutual pet names and
games, but not before he romanced her sister, first. The couple married much to the dismay of his father,
Leopold, yet soon thereafter, experienced financial woes.
Since Salieri tutored several prized pupils over Mozarts’ meager three, Constanze confided in
Salieri to give her husband connections to more students, particularly Princess Elizabeth. During their
initial encounter, Constanze let Salieri look at Mozarts’ original manuscript, in which he discovered that
this mastermind made no corrections because he transposed the music entirely from his thoughts. Bearing
in mind that Salieri’s battle was not with Mozart, but with God, through Mozart, he gave up his attempt at
an affair with his bride.
By then, Salieri already bore murderous inclinations toward Mozart. After all, Mozart indeed
shared relations with Salieri’s young and talented opera student whom he coveted the most: Katherina
(Ashleigh Chisholm). Nevertheless, Salieri pretended to accept Mozart as a brother in their secret society,
the Free Masons - led by Baron Gottfried van Swieten (Shawn Williamson) and supported by Counts
Johann von Strack (Allen Turner) and Orsini-Rosenberg (Daniel Tuttel) - by landing him presentations for
Emperor Joseph II (Jason Metcalf), until he exposed their brotherhood in a vaudeville premiere, thanks to
Salieri’s misleading idea.
Unfortunately, Mozart failed to impress the Emperor because either he used too many notes or
extended the time with encores. Ironically, after the death of Mozart, his widow Constanze supported
herself and their child by selling his manuscripts by the note. Many causes could have contributed to his
mortality, including kidney failure as indicated on his birth certificate, or he may have simply be driven
crazy by either his liquor addiction or another form of poison, by the name of Antonio Salieri.
As the end of Mozart’s life drew near, he experienced chronic cramps and mentioned numerous
dreams where he would see a faceless man, who he believed was his deceased father, who he described as
“bitter and too stubborn,” yet longed for his pride. The very man who appeared before him in his
nightmares turned out to be Salieri himself. While Mozarts’ legacy lived on in his music, Salieri’s, which
was once played frequently and popularly requested during their day, deteriorated to
nonexistence.
Salieri, too, displayed derangement in the last years of his life, as he insisted on his involvement in
Mozart’s passing. Mozart haunted Salieri until he himself hit the grave, although he survived slitting his
own throat in a mad rage. Salieri claimed that he was “ripped, buried and embalmed in fame” and
remembered as the “greatest musician in all of Europe,” after being “pushed by triumph to triumph,” but he
surrendered to the title, Patron Saint of Mediocrity, as Mozart remained a memory in the musical world for
generations to come.
Did each colleague - or, shall I say, counterpart - play a major role in one another’s finales? In
the Director’s Notes of the program, Craik points out, “Although set in the 18th century it deals with
universal themes and the timeless struggle between the sacred and the profane using language that is very
much a part of today’s world.”
Classic yet contemporary in the lines and personalities of the characters, one major theme
illustrated prevails: Keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer.
OPINION
pg. 2
THE WAR WHOOP,
OPINION
Vol. 79 – Issue IX
Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2003
pg. 2