Ep. 140 Moby Dick by Jake Heggie

Summary

Opera For Everyone – Ep. 140: Moby-Dick by Heggie
March 9, 2026
Host: Pat Wright
Guest: Candace Kelsey

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Overview

In this enthralling episode, host Pat Wright welcomes educator, poet, and self-proclaimed “Moby-Dick expert and instigator” Candace Kelsey for a deep dive into Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s 2010 opera Moby-Dick, based on Herman Melville’s iconic novel. The discussion masterfully balances exploration of Melville’s text, the creation and significance of the opera, major themes and characters, historical and cultural context, and the unique transformation of a sprawling American epic into a focused, emotional stage experience. Through insightful conversation, selected musical excerpts, and literary analysis, Pat and Candace make both the opera and novel accessible and vivid for listeners of all levels.

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Introduction and Guest Origins

[01:34]

• Pat introduces Candace, an educator and poet who became a guest after persistent, passionate outreach about her love for both the opera and Melville’s novel.
• Candace shares her background as a champion of Moby-Dick—an educator who’s taught it for 23 years, reader at Moby-Dick marathons, and writer about its importance in her life ([04:05]).
• The hosts agree the novel’s infamy often precedes it, with Pat confessing not to have finished it herself, reflecting what many feel: “I, to this date, have not fully read Moby Dick. That's a big confession.” (Pat, [05:55])

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Why Read Moby-Dick? – The Novel’s Context & Legacy

[06:24]

• Candace: “I call it a philosophical fever dream…” – Not simply an adventure, but an exploration of human nature, history, and even humor.
• Discussion of Melville’s intellect, research methods, and the novel’s famed mix of philosophy, encyclopedic whaling detail, and dark humor.
• Melville’s personal struggles after its publication—critical and financial disappointment, followed by resurgence in the 20th century.

Notable Quote:
“It’s not just adventure. It's also just this total exploration of all things human nature. But it's also surprisingly funny.” — Candace, [06:24]

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Melville’s Experience and Themes in the Novel

[15:07]

• Melville’s history as a sailor, exposure to whaling, his desertion in the South Pacific, even time jailed after mutiny, all contributed to his worldview in Moby-Dick.
• The role of New Bedford and Nantucket in whaling, and the importance of whale oil for the global economy of the 19th century ([18:28]).
• Historical context: the Fugitive Slave Act and how whaling ships became places of sanctuary and diversity.

Notable Quote:
“Many of the African American whalers were escaped slaves. Because what better place to be than thousands of miles away on a ship where no slave catchers could find you?” — Candace, [18:12]

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From Epic Novel to Modern Opera

[19:58]

• The challenge of distilling Melville’s 500–700 page opus into a two-act opera.
• Key changes: The opera drops Ishmael’s (“Greenhorn’s”) land adventures; the narrative starts at sea and maintains its intensity throughout.
• The libretto uses condensation and clever merging of characters and scenes (e.g., the opera’s “Greenhorn” is only named Ishmael at the very end).

Notable Quote:
“One of the things they do is they dispense with the stuff at the beginning of the novel... he’s called Greenhorn in the opera... that's just like saying rookie, newbie.” — Pat, [20:54]

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Act I: Characters and Relationships

Opening & Major Players [21:06-24:11]

• Queequeg and Greenhorn:
  First scene: Queequeg (singing a Samoan prayer) and Greenhorn (unfamiliar and annoyed at first, but quickly forming a heartfelt friendship) ([21:06-23:07]).

Memorable Moment:
“If that's our modern day example of breaking bread with somebody, he's so hospitable.” — Candace, [22:55]

• The Crew and Hierarchy:
  Early introduction of the ship's structure—Ahab the storied captain (not seen for a week), Starbuck (the Quaker moral compass), and assorted mates ([24:06-26:02]).

Captain Ahab’s Entrance & Obsession [28:47+]

• Ahab finally appears, exuding charisma and rallying the men.
• First reveals his obsession with hunting Moby Dick, the whale that took his leg.
• Uses the doubloon (coin nailed to the mast) to incentivize the crew’s loyalty.

Memorable Quote:
“Mr. Starbuck, art thou not game for Moby Dick in front of the entire crew?” — Candace quoting Ahab, [32:16]

• Starbuck objects: vengeance on a dumb brute, not the purpose of a whaling voyage ([35:47]).

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Themes of Hierarchy, Obsession, and Duty

Whale Hunt Economics & Doubloon Symbolism [26:23-35:05]

• The commercial importance of whale oil for the world, profit-sharing among crew, and the moral conflict when Ahab steers the mission away from profit towards personal vengeance.
• The doubloon as a symbol of individual desire: each major character sees something different in its meaning.

Notable Quote:
“Pip... when he looks at the doubloon, he says, I see. You see, we see, they see, Pip sees. And what that means is Pip is aware that everybody sees their own desire, their own greed in that doubloon.” — Candace, [34:02]

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Highlight: Ahab’s Soliloquy [43:48+]

• This Melville-penned reflection becomes the musical and emotional pivot of the opera.
• Composer Heggie reportedly scrapped six months of work upon encountering these lines, then wrote the rest in four months—“it was almost supernatural” ([43:48]).

Read by Candace:
“I leave a white and turbid wake. Pale waters, paler cheeks. Wherever I sail, the envious billows... All loveliness is anguish to me...”
[44:32]

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Relationships, Tension, and Tragedy

Starbuck's Moral Dilemma & Pip's Ordeal [49:54, 56:04]

• Starbuck is caught between duty and morality, feeling powerless to resist Ahab ([49:54]).
• The crew tries to stay occupied—dancing and whale steak dreams—while racial tensions and shipboard hierarchy flare.
• Pip, the young cabin boy (a trousers role for a soprano), is cast out of the whaleboat during a chase and left adrift—a harrowing and haunting sequence ([56:04-57:23]).

Memorable Moment (Pip lost at sea):
“Anyone who's ever been in a large body of water floating can relate to what's happening here... and then the enormity of the ocean, this concept of being abandoned.” — Candace, [57:00]

The Factory Ship and Lostness [67:02-70:51]

• Vivid rendering of the grisly but essential process of turning a whale into oil—described by Pat and Candace as Melville’s “fiery inferno out in the middle of the ocean” ([67:30]).
• Choral highlight: “Lost in the Heart of the Sea,” echoing the men’s sense of peril and isolation ([69:07-70:51]).

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Act I Finale: Conscience and Crisis

Ahab’s Power and Starbuck’s Choice [71:29–76:06]

• The iconic showdown: Ahab, wielding a musket, forces Starbuck to his knees in a confrontation brimming with religious and Shakespearean overtones ([72:18]).
• Starbuck faces his own temptation: whether to kill Ahab in his sleep and save the crew, asking “is it murder to strike a would-be murderer in his bed?” but cannot do it ([75:32-75:55]).

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Act II: Storms, Friendship, and Fate

Storm and Intimacy [76:27-79:08]

• Opens one year later—crew weary, weather dire.
• Queequeg and Greenhorn share a profound moment of kindness, kinship, and identity. Queequeg: “Friend, everyone has a name.” ([77:15])

Queequeg’s Illness and the Coffin [79:15–83:47]

• Queequeg falls strangely ill in the masthead; demands a coffin be made for him—echoing themes of mortality and resurrection ([81:32, 83:13]).
• The coffin is later repurposed as a lifebuoy, becoming a literal and metaphorical vehicle for salvation.

The Rachel, Gardner, and Final Refusal [84:59–88:28]

• Captain Gardner of the Rachel pleads with Ahab to help him find his lost 12-year-old son, another echo of Pip’s own ordeal—but Ahab, now “madness maddened”, coldly refuses ([85:10–86:55]).

Notable Analysis:
“Here is the moment for Ahab when he denies helping a fellow captain look for his 12-year-old son ... it’s monstrous.”
— Candace, [86:55]

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Climax: The Final Chase

Forging the Devil’s Spear [88:28+]

• Ahab, fully in the grasp of monomania, forges his own harpoon, baptizes it in the name of the devil using Pip’s blood ([88:28-89:09]).

The Symphony Scene [92:44–95:45]

• “Symphony” duet between Ahab and Starbuck—brief, poignant connection as fathers and men longing for home (“Let me look into a human eye”), quickly shattered by the return of obsession ([93:56, 94:32]).

Notable Quote:
“He knows he cannot save himself from his vengeance. But he wants to show some compassion to Starbuck. Which I think is an interesting legacy for Ahab to leave behind.”
— Candace, [95:18]

Moby Dick Sighted and the Grand Finale [99:16–111:12]

• Ahab spots Moby Dick and claims the doubloon; tension, anticipation, and dread fill the scene.
• In the opera’s adaptation, Starbuck is ordered to remain on the ship (in the novel, he joins the boats).
• The catastrophic chase unfolds: Ahab’s boat is destroyed, the line twists around his neck—he is literally lashed to the object of his obsession and dragged under ([110:15]).
• The Pequod itself is sunk; all are lost except Greenhorn, who survives atop Queequeg’s coffin-turned-lifebuoy.

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Epilogue and Resolution

“Call Me Ishmael” [111:36–113:02]

• As Gardner’s Rachel finds the survivor, Greenhorn is asked his name. He finally claims, “Call me Ishmael”—bringing the story to an iconic, haunting close.

Notable Reaction:
“I just got shivers when you said that, and I knew it was coming... it's absolutely genius that Heggie and Scheer had the Call me Ishmael come at the end because then that allows Ishmael to tell the story.” — Pat, [112:41]

• Scene closes with a sense of human kindness, hope, and the redemptive possibility of storytelling and connection after tragedy ([113:02–113:40]).

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Notable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• On the Heart of Moby-Dick ([06:24]):
  “I call it a philosophical fever dream... it's also surprisingly funny.” — Candace

• On Melville’s Knowledge ([07:56]):
  “...an encyclopedic mind... this man knew everything...” — Candace

• On Ahab’s Magnetic Leadership ([31:17]):
  “Some sort of magical, almost satanic, enchanting mist comes out in his breath and... all of the sailors inhale it, and they are then beholden to his mission. All but one.” — Candace

• On the Doubloon as Symbol ([34:02]):
  “Pip... when he looks at the doubloon, he says, ‘I see. You see. We see. They see. Pip sees...’ [He] is aware that everybody sees their own desire, their own greed in that doubloon.” — Candace

• On Ahab’s Humanity ([93:56]):
  “Let me look into a human eye.” — Ahab, as discussed by the hosts

• On the Final Line ([112:41]):
  “Call me Ishmael.” — Greenhorn (final scene)

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Standout Musical Excerpts

• Queequeg’s Samoan Prayer (Opening, [21:06])
• Ahab’s Soliloquy (“I Leave a White and Turbid Wake”, [44:32])
• Choral “Lost in the Heart of the Sea” ([70:03], [90:58])
• Duet of Ahab and Starbuck (“Symphony”, [93:56])

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Key Takeaways

• Transformation:
  Heggie & Scheer’s opera succeeds in transforming a vast, cerebral American novel into a nuanced, emotional, and dramatically taut operatic work.
• Universal Themes:
  The opera explores obsession, friendship across difference, duty versus conscience, the seductive nature of charisma/leadership, and the possibility of redemption.
• Accessibility:
  Even those unfamiliar with opera or Moby-Dick will find hooks—character, history, culture, and music—through the warmth and humor of hosts and the clarity of their explanations.
• Enduring Relevance:
  Connections are drawn throughout to American history (slavery, race, migration), current energy/political issues, and universal human nature.

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Overall Tone & Experience

• Inviting and Enthusiastic: The spirit is friendly, educational, and at times delightfully geeky in literary and operatic enthusiasm.
• Candid and Reflective: The hosts share personal confessions (“I, to this date, have not fully read Moby Dick”—Pat), laughter, and humility.
• Richly Informed: Deep dives into Melville studies, musicology, philosophy, and stagecraft.

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Listen for

• Sparkling banter (“forgive the pun, deep dive”—Pat, [14:50])
• Interleaved musical excerpts that bring analysis to life
• The “Opera Helmet Quiz” as an on-air recap of Act I ([62:18])
• Many parallels drawn between opera and literature, old and new, land and sea

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In Summary

Pat Wright and Candace Kelsey, blending literary expertise, personal passion, and the infectious joys of community radio, provide a detailed, empathetic, and thoroughly engaging guide to Jake Heggie’s Moby-Dick opera—a modern American masterpiece, and a window onto the timeless obsessions, doubts, and possibilities that Melville first charted on the open sea.

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For further information on the opera and guest Candace Kelsey, visit CandiceMKelseyPoet.com.

Transcript

[A]

This is Pat Wright with a special announcement before we begin our show from March 8 to March 15 is the Khol Sunday Spring Fund Drive. You know, Khol is the only community radio station in Wyoming. And if you want to support this precious resource or support Opera for Everyone, I invite you please to visit 891khol.org donate any amount is deeply appreciated. Consider becoming a member. So once again, that's8918kh.org donate and we thank you. Please enjoy this new show from Opera for Everyone. Welcome to another edition of Opera for Everyone. I'm your host, Pat Wright, and I have a brand new guest contributor to Opera for Everyone. Please welcome Candace Kelsey. Welcome, Candice.

[B]

Thank you so much. It's quite an honor to be here, Pat.

[A]

Oh, my goodness. Well, I just have to give a little backstory on how Candace ended up coming on Opera for Everyone. She years ago wrote to me a very sweet note about enjoying the show and being sort of new to opera and how the show helped. And that is my goal with this program, to help people enjoy opera. Or maybe if you already do enjoy opera, give us give some more background to a particular opera. But then after some period of time went by, she said, ah, there's an opera. I really want Opera for Everyone to treat. I'm going to let you pick up the story from here.

[B]

So the perseverance in my personality came to the forefront and I decided I'm going to reach out one more time. Pat, you were so gracious when I first reached out to you to tell you how helpful this podcast was to me as a new lover of opera. So I felt, I think, I think she will receive this. Well. And so I did. I said, look, I am a huge fan of the novel Moby Dick. I am an educator in my multiple decades, and I've taught Moby Dick many times. The opera was so meaningful to me when I saw the premiere in 2010 and it was being resurrected at the Met. And so I thought, wow, this is a great opportunity. Opera for Everyone should do this. Pat would love it. And I just wanted to hear you present Moby Dick, the opera on this podcast.

[A]

Well, here we are. This is Moby Dick Day.

[B]

It's amazing.

[A]

We're going to talk about this opera by Jake Heggie and the librettist Jean Shearer. But let me give a more complete and proper introduction of Candice. Candice is an educator and. And she has been for 27 years and a poet with many publications.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

I'm so impressed. Postcards from the Masthead another place altogether. I just. And if you read the prose that Candace writes, you will find that the writing style is just deliciously joyful to read. It's just I can't say enough nice things. In fact, let me, if you don't mind, Candice, I'm going to share your website. It's Candice. C A N D I C E M Kelsey K E L s e y poet.com and there's lots of information there. So I just. You won me over with your writing, honestly.

[B]

Wow. Well, thank you. That means so much to me. I really appreciate that.

[A]

I should also mention that Candace has a lifelong passion, as far as I can tell, a lifelong passion for this book, Moby Dick. In fact, I even read a piece that you wrote about it in the Wild Roof Journal substack about what an important book this was to you. But you've taught it for many years. 23, I think.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

You've read it even more times than that. And you've participated in something I only learned about thanks to you. Moby Dick marathons, where you read Moby Dick along with lots of your fellow Moby Dick lovers, chapter by chapter, and work through it. And it is like a marathon in the terms of the number of hours that are involved.

[B]

Absolutely. It's usually done in 25 hours, and everybody's assigned either a portion of a chapter or an entire chapter. The one in Venice beach is out by the breakwaters, sitting in a director's chair in the sand. And the local aquarium brings actual whale artifacts, like bones and spines and things, and set it up around the microphone, and so it's really delicious. And then, of course, the New Bedford Whaling Museum is top tier, and they do a whole event with all sorts of ancillary things going on. Melville Scholars performances. It's absolutely wonderful.

[A]

Is that every year in January that they do that?

[B]

It is, yes.

[A]

So it's an annual event. Mark your calendars for the next January that rolls around everyone, because you can find it on YouTube.

[B]

Absolutely. And if you want to be a reader come November, you want to get in there and sign up.

[A]

You know, let's talk about reading Moby Dick, shall we? You've taught this so many years, and I will confess, I, to this date, have not fully read Moby Dick. That's a big confession.

[B]

No problem. I think that's most people's experience.

[A]

I think so, too. People go, well, I know what it means to chase the white whale, and I know who Captain Ahab is and Starbuck and call Me, Ishmael and all of that. It's part of the culture.

[B]

Right.

[A]

But not everyone has. Not a lot of us, I should say, have read the full novel, what a lot of people call the great American novel. Tell us why we should read Moby Dick.

[B]

Well, it's definitely one of those novels that, like you're saying, has arrived with this legendary or half legendary status. Yes. It is a whaling adventure. And to understand America's history and our reliance on whale oil is relevant today with what's going on in the world and our reliance on petroleum. Right. Fossil fuels. So we have that connection. It's also. I call it a philosophical fever dream because it has. That is the twin theme of it. It's not just adventure. It's also just this total exploration of all things human nature. But it's also surprisingly funny. I think it's one of the funniest novels I've ever read. But it also highlights this encyclopedic mind of Herman Melville that alone pre Google. This man knew everything he's known to have had just in his home in Arrowhead, where he wrote Moby Dick. He had just Shakespeare everywhere. He had the Bible out, He had all these scientific books out. So he really was doing this obsessive exploration of whaling and of human nature. He finished it in 1851. And then that's when he wrote to Nathaniel Hawthorne, whom he later dedicated the novel to. He wrote to him, I have written a wicked book, yet I feel spotless as the lamb. That's how he described it, which is really perfect because it's a novel that really does plunge headfirst into darkness and fate and madness.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What's interesting is that, yeah, it was a commercial disappointment. I mean, it failed. I think he made possibly the number is like $1,200 total, whereas a first edition today is worth $60,000. Critics hated it, and it really, I think, affected him in a pretty deep way. This is why I think. So the two novels he wrote right after Moby Dick kind of failed. One, Pierre is a deliberately sort of satiric gothic pot boiler, which he sort of leaned into mocking the sentimental novels that were selling well.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

And then he wrote the Confidence man, which is a sharp kind of portrait of how America is just smitten with the con man. It was kind of loosely inspired by P.T. barnum. And then after that he took a wild left turn and just wrote poetry until his death.

[A]

Well, also, he had some successful books before Moby Dick.

[B]

Yes, yes. Typee and Omu and His Travels. When he was in the South Pacific on the whaling ship, like the Acushnet. Those were wildly successful.

[A]

Right. And so where does Billy Budd fit into all this?

[B]

Billy Budd comes later, towards the end of his life. It was his one last ditch effort and he actually left it unfinished. So it was published posthumously in the 1920s during the Melville revival.

[A]

Oh. And that's when. During this revival is when Moby Dick got a little more exposure, I'm guessing.

[B]

Exactly, yes. A man by the name of Mumford sort of reintroduced it to the world and it took off.

[A]

Oh, well, I will say that Billy Budd, much shorter than Moby Dick, is the one my high school English teacher had us read. That was my exposure to Melville, of course.

[B]

Yes, yes. And I think Benjamin Britten did the opera of Billy Budd.

[A]

Yes, yes, he did. He did. Billy Budd, that was a 1951 opera. And I have to say, one of the things I was reading in preparation from this was actually written by one of the people who's been on Opera for Everyone before, Gerald Malone. You can find it on his website, therestisopra.com he was reviewing the recent Met production of Moby Dick, and he believes, as an opera, Moby Dick is America's Peter Grimes. Peter Grimes, of course, composed by Benjamin Britton, the same person who did Melville's Billy Budd. It's an interesting world, this seafaring world. In fact, we're not even on land at all during the opera. Not true for the book, but we're on this boat the whole time. There's one female voice, but that's because it's a trousers role, the young boy, which not something we necessarily do these days, but it is the sole female voice, even though it's a male character, a boy character. I don't know if we've said already that this opera premiered in 2010, so 21st century opera, I think that's a first for opera for everyone doing something so recent.

[B]

All right.

[A]

Yeah. And it was a co production of five different opera companies. It premieres in Dallas and then it's in State Opera of South Australia. It's in Calgary, San Diego. Am I quizzing myself? Calgary, San Diego and San Francisco. San Francisco, of course. Yes. And San Francisco is the one who put out a lovely dvd, if anyone's interested. It's not as easy to find as some of the old 19th century operas, but there is a DVD that San Francisco Opera produced, and it's lovely. It was for one of the television stations. Well, should we stop for a Moment and listen to a little bit of the Prelude just to get us in the mood for this opera.

[B]

Absolutely. And we need to picture the stars in the sky over the ocean.

[C]

It.

[A]

You're listening to opera for everyone and I am here with Candace Kelsey and I'm simply going to call you my Moby Dick expert and instigator as well.

[B]

I definitely like the second part.

[A]

This has been such an interesting, forgive the pun, deep dive for me to spend time with Melville and Moby Dick. But tell us a little bit more about why these seafaring narratives from Herman Melville.

[B]

Well, he experienced whales at sea. He served as a harpooner on a Nantucket whale ship called the Charles and Henry for about five months. He also sailed aboard the Acushnet, but deserted after 18 months, which is where he garnered much of his material for

[A]

Typee and omu because he didn't desert in Nantucket. Where was he when he deserted?

[B]

In the South Pacific.

[A]

So quite international with his experience.

[B]

Absolutely. And that comes through in his characters. He also was on another whale ship, I believe, the Luciane, where there was a mutiny and he was actually jailed for participating in this event.

[A]

Oh, that's serious business on the high seas to mutiny against your captain.

[B]

Correct. So he has a little bit of a checkered past and experience from which to write. He also knew the lore of the day of the whale ship Essex that was stove by a sperm whale in the South Pacific. So, yeah. So he comes to this with some experience and a lot of energy and passion.

[A]

Yes, a lot of passion. And his time in the South Seas, I understand it was also part of what gave him an understanding of people from other cultures, an appreciation. And not just a foreignness, an otherness, a true appreciation of the humanity of people who weren't like himself.

[B]

Absolutely. In fact, his epic poem Clara that he wrote near the end of his days was based on his global travels. And it's really about bringing together all the different worldviews and having them dialogue with one another.

[A]

Yeah. And it's interesting because we're so reliant on all of our modern technology and transportation options to get to know other people. But somebody like Melville was dedicated to that early on, even though we think of him as a. As a Northeast in the United States kind of guy.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Well, speaking of the United States, though, let's just give a little bit of context. You mentioned to us that it was 1851 when Moby Dick was first published, and that was. That was a difficult time. This is in the lead up to the Civil War, 1850, very important. The Fugitive Slave act had been passed. And that's the one that made it federally legally binding for people. Whether you were in a state that permitted slavery or were you in a state that did not permit slavery. If someone was a runaway slave, an enslaved person, people were legally bound to return them. This was very controversial. And the people in New England were not on board with this.

[B]

Absolutely not. In fact, the Underground Railroad led straight to New Bedford, which is fantastic. And Frederick Douglass spent a lot of time in New Bedford. Many of the African American whalers were escaped slaves. Because what better place to be than thousands of miles away on a ship where no slave catchers could find you?

[A]

Right. And we should, just for clarification, mention that New Bedford that we've referenced a few times. That's really the heart of the whaling industry. And what an important industry it was.

[B]

Absolutely. And that was the traditional location, whereas actually Nantucket was the original and then it became more industrialized in New Bedford.

[A]

Yeah. So there's a lot of outside factors that people would. Well, I would say his readers would know about it when it was published in the middle of the 19th century, but as you pointed out, it wasn't as widely read then as it was in the early part of the 20th century. And moving forward. But it's important to say, well, whaling, why was that so important? It was vitally important. People became absolutely rich, Very, very wealthy if you were a ship owner or if you were a ship's captain for that matter. Because the whale oil that they were able to ultimately render on the ship, and there's a scene of that in the opera, that whale oil was so precious because it was fuel, it was lubricant. There was nothing else like it.

[B]

Absolutely. It generated the economy and most homes, most families, most businesses needed it to operate whatever machinery. Yeah. Light to. To light their candles for women's corsets.

[A]

The whale bones.

[B]

Yeah, the whalebone corsets. But it was as. As important as fossil fuels are to the industrial revolution.

[A]

Right. Well, there's, there's a bit of setting the scene. Now let's get to our story of the opera because honestly, I think it's a work of magic that they distilled this. I don't know. I've read over 500 pages. 600. It depends on the edition. Up to 700 pages. Moby Dick. To distill this into a two act opera is unbelievable. And one of the things they do is they dispense with the stuff at the beginning of the Novel where. Well, he's called Greenhorn in the opera. Call me Ishmael. That's not. No spoilers in opera. That's going to be the last line of the opera. So the guy who's Ishmael is called Greenhorn throughout. He is Greenhorn. He's never been on a whaling boat before. That's just like saying rookie newbie. He's new to it. But we open the opera at sea. In fact, we're at sea through the entire opera.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

There is no getting to know each other on land. And we open. Greenhorn is present, but the harpooner Queequeg is there.

[B]

Yes. And we open with Queequeg singing this Samoan prayer that Hegi found, or ashir and hegi found this Samoan prayer that he's singing. And Greenhorn is trying to sleep. So we start with this tension right away between this regular old American Christian guy and this South Pacific Islander who's covered in his tattoos with a tomahawk and singing a song in his language that is keeping Greenhorn awake. Now, this conflates the land scenes, the first chunk of chapters of Moby Dick, where Ishmael and Queequeg meet in one of the most hilarious scenes of all of literature. But this is where Gene Shear, the librettist, is a genius because he conflated that all down into this opening scene. And there's also chapters where Queequeg, it's called biography. He tells Ishmael all about his homeland and how he's actually a prince from his land, but he set out on the ocean to join whaling ships to learn more about other people's perspectives, which. How beautiful is that?

[A]

Yeah. And he tells us, little by little, you get these little snatches. Again, it's the consolidation that's happening in this libretto versus in the book, that he doesn't have a family, that this is how he's trying to understand himself and other people. And they go from. Queequeg is never really angry at Greenhorn, but Greenhorn's just annoyed by the noise and doesn't understand it. And it just seems so foreign. But pretty quickly, in that first scene, you see the spark of true friendship because Queequeg is so generous to him,

[B]

he's kind, and he even shares his pipe and tells Greenhorn, have a smoke with me. And if that's our modern day example of breaking bread with somebody, he's so hospitable.

[A]

Yeah. And that tomahawk you reference is in fact the pipe, which is a little Misunderstanding early on. And I imagine part of that comedy that you're talking about.

[B]

Yes, absolutely.

[A]

So we transition from that pretty quickly to actually the ship coming to life with the entire crew. And we're going to meet our major characters here in the beginning. And Starbuck is one of those major characters. That's a name that I think the people who had the coffee chain actually had heard that they originally wanted to call it. One of them wanted to call it Pequod. And somebody else said, you can't call coffee Pequod. So they ended up with Starbucks.

[B]

Right. Nobody was gonna hit the drive through and ask for a Pequod coffee.

[A]

We should clarify. Pequod is the name of the ship that they're all on for this story.

[B]

Yes, yes. And for a little reference, it is named after the Pequot indigenous people of southeastern Connecticut.

[A]

Yes. Starbuck, first mate on the Pequod. Yes.

[B]

He's our upright, righteous Quaker man who is quite beholden to his core values. And he's the moral compass on the ship.

[A]

Yeah. There's a lot of talk of religion in this or references to religion or religious practices. We saw it right in the beginning with Queequeg and his prayers. And Starbuck seems to be a genuinely religious man. He's a Quaker. You referenced Greenhorn as a Christian. Yes, but he's not as practicing, shall we say, as someone like Starbuck. But he is a moral center, which is great having that for a first mate, having him being one of the leadership. But he notes that the actual captain, Captain Ahab, has not been seen the entire week that they've been at sea so far.

[B]

Correct. And many rumors abound about Ahab. Where is he? Is he sick? What's happening? Why hasn't he made his appearance yet?

[A]

Yeah, and he's storied. He's a captain who's been at it for quite some number of years. But the mates, the first mate, second mate, third mate Stubb is the second mate. Flaska is the third mate. They're behind him. I mean, there is a real. Even though they're out at sea, away from all the rest of civilization, there's a very clear hierarchy of power and order on a ship like this. There has to be.

[B]

There absolutely has to be. And that's why mutiny is such a big deal. Because when you unravel that very necessary hierarchy that leads to trouble. That's very disorienting, especially on the high seas.

[A]

That's right. And this. This ship has gone out and it has a purpose again. We didn't see the. The scenes on land when the owners of the ship are. Are present. But they make clear in this second scene of the opera that there's a reason that this ship is out. It's why all whaling ships are out on the seas. It is to catch whales.

[C]

It is to.

[A]

It is to render their blubber into oil. Take anything else valuable, like the bones, which are those flexible, strong pieces that can be used for any number of purposes. And it is to turn their time into money, basically.

[B]

Absolutely. Absolutely. Bildad and Peleg are the owners in the novel. And they're quite emphatic that this is an economic venture. This is a floating factory.

[A]

Right.

[B]

And the job of Captain Ahab is to bring back as many barrels of oil as possible. And the crew, by the way, are vested in this as well, because they get what's called a lei, which is a fraction of how much oil they bring back. So anything that stands in the way of their, say, 100th lei or 700th lei of what they harvest is not going to be welcome.

[A]

No. I think it's time now to listen to a little bit of the music. And I think you'll be able to understand the dialogue. It's one of the clearer operas, at least when there's not a whole lot of voices singing at once where they're agreed to this commercial purpose. Wales and wealth. THEY sing. And then we take it home to Nantucket, to New Bedford, to Manhattan, to Long Island, Boston, New Haven, Cape Cod, Tisbury. Anywhere that these people are from. These are the Americans speaking. And there are people from other places like Queequeg as well. In fact, all three harpooners are not native to America. And we will also meet in this clip, Captain Ahab. He, by the way, is what they call a helden tenor. He's a tenor, but this heroic kind of tenor, this heroic voice. And greenhorn is also a tenor, but he's a lyric tenor, so the quality of these two tenor voices are different. And Starbuck, because they're all male voices, of course, Starbuck is. And if you hear a female, you know it's Pip, the cabin boy. Starbuck is baritone. So just take a listen, and we're gonna set the stage about what all these people are about. And you're gonna see Ahab and how Ahab does what you know he's gonna do. Cause you know about what it means to chase the white whale.

[C]

Captain. An amazing bad one. Is it, Thompson? Mr. Scott. Sa. So, Savior, we will gather white bows from the sea. We will grapple the world by the throat until it gets to the. Are you ready?

[A]

It's quite an introduction to the crew of the Pequod and their captain Ahab, a man with a certain amount of charisma, leadership quality that the sailors respond to.

[B]

Absolutely. And in the novel, the description is that some sort of magical, almost satanic, enchanting mist comes out in his breath and that all of the sailors inhale it, and they are then beholden to his mission. All but one.

[A]

Yeah, that one being Starbuck. Starbuck doesn't buy into it all. But before Ahab makes clear his true purpose on this voyage, he gets them psyched up with this pep talk of white gold from the sea and Moby Dick that they're going to go after. But it's just after this clip that we played. Played that Starbuck says, but Captain Moby Dick, isn't that the whale who took off your leg?

[B]

Right.

[A]

So it's been revealed that it's not just that he's a whale that is desirable. There's vengeance afoot.

[B]

Right. Starbuck is taking that moment to very gently and respectfully point that out. To which, of course, Ahab responds. Mr. Starbuck, art thou not game for Moby Dick in front of the entire crew?

[A]

Yeah. Because he's gotten them all excited about the whole thing. Death to Moby Dick. Death, death, death. And they will sing this quite a lot. But it is interesting. What a clever leader Ahab is, is that he's gotten them all bought in. And by the way, it's not just enthusiasm. There's a little bit of monetary encouragement.

[B]

Yes. The doubloon, the coin that he nails to the center mast and entices them to see it as this is the prize. Whoever spies Moby Dick first gets this. And I don't know if we want to do the. No spoilers in opera here, but always. Okay, guess who spies Moby Dick first. Ahab. And when the crew asks him. But the doubloon, he very happily tells them it is mine.

[A]

Yeah. With his peg leg, he requires help to get up to the point where he could see him. But he's so motivated. He is so motivated, and he's frustrated because it's a long span of time that's gone by before they do spot Moby Dick in the second act.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Yeah. This doubloon, I think, honestly, I think if in the early stages, if one of the sailors had spied Moby Dick, he would have happily given it because he really wanted Moby Dick. Found. But as time went by, he got frustrated that they weren't finding Moby Dick.

[B]

Absolutely.

[A]

How do you find a whale in a whole gigantic ocean?

[B]

They have their charts and their maps, and they know where the feeding grounds are. And the time and the season on the line is what they call it, is where they can find the sperm whales. So it is a little more scientific. But I think one of the great symbols in the novel is the doubloon, because Melville has each of the key characters walk by that doubloon at night and recite what they see in it. In other words, what they will buy with that doubloon. So Stubb, of course, is going to buy cigars, and Starbuck is taken by some of the astrological symbols. But Pip is the wise fool that we see often in Shakespeare. And when he looks at the doubloon, he says, I see. You see, we see, they see, Pip sees. And what that means is Pip is aware that everybody sees their own desire, their own greed in that doubloon. And it establishes in the novel Pip as this wise character, the conscience of the ship.

[A]

Yeah, Pip is a very interesting character, and he'll have more action later on in the story. But, yeah, the doubloon is a powerful symbol and it has been nailed to the mast. And of course, for everyone to see and to keep the motivation up for them all. When it becomes clear to Starbuck what's going on, he says, captain, I don't see things the same way you're seeing

[B]

them, of course, because his. He wants to be honor the leadership of the owners of the ship and fulfill the duty of getting as much whale oil as possible. And if we are off course, this is not good for business.

[A]

No, it's not. And it's also interesting, just a voice of some sanity and reason after whipping up the rest of the crew. You can't get vengeance on an animal. They don't have the same motivations as people. He's a dumb brute. We're here for the oil to make a profit, not to get vengeance on an animal that doesn't have the same way of thinking about things that people do.

[B]

Right.

[A]

But Ahab will not agree to that line of thinking.

[B]

In fact, he doubles down and he has the harpooners take their harpoons apart and turn them upside down and drink this hot grog in some sort of infernal communion ceremony.

[A]

Yeah, that's an amazing piece where you can unscrew your harpoon and it becomes your shot glass. It's kind of crazy. But it's beautifully depicted in the album.

[B]

It's absolutely cool.

[A]

We then have a moment in the next scene with Starbuck and Greenhorn. Starbuck in kind of a mentor role for Greenhorn. He doesn't have a lot of personal time to give Greenhorn. He's going to let other people be the main teachers. But he has a few ideas he wants to make sure that Greenhorn accepts. He needs to understand. We're out here for whaling and it's a dangerous business.

[C]

Out on the ocean, Chasing after a monster three times as long as many times past. Many times pastra. A flick of a tail you tossed and lost at sea. In one moment, all the world is gone. It is a battering lad, a 20 foot an. An army of horses charging, charging. She breaches. And in one moment, because of mistake you made, we're all smashed to pieces.

[B]

Starbuck uses this moment to inform Greenhorn that he must have a healthy fear of these whales because he's invited him to be on his whale boat for when they lower to attack the whales.

[A]

Yeah. Again, if you've never really thought about whaling before, it's a fascinating realization for me anyway, that the big ship that they're on is not your vantage point for hunting. When you spot a whale, you lower these smaller boats and they're teams of men. One of the harpooners is in each one of the boats and there are teams with different jobs assigned for all the men who are in those boats. And Pip himself, the cabin boy, doesn't expect to have to be in one of these boats ever. Turns out, spoiler. Turns out he will be at some point recruited into one of the boats because another hand is needed and kicked

[B]

right out of the boat.

[A]

Yes. But one of the things when. When Starbuck is telling Greenhorn, you need to have a healthy fear of these animals, Starbuck lets us know it's very important to him that he return to Nantucket. After all, he has a wife and a son and he loves them very much and he expects to get back to Nantucket. And if you don't have a healthy fear of the elements, of the whale, of the dangers, you're likely to do something reckless that could imperil that for everyone on the boat.

[B]

And that's one of the nice things that Starbuck and Ahab have in common. Melville writes about Ahab having his humanities, and that is in the shape of. He has a young wife and a new son as well.

[A]

Yeah. Who at one point he refers to as a widow because he's gone all the time. A widow with a living husband.

[B]

Oh, right.

[A]

Which is poignant, I think, but absolutely, it is part of this life. Just as at one point, they will describe what has gone on for eons and eons of anyone who sends family members out to sea, the people who are on land and who go and look for the return of the boats day after day after day after day. And it can be heartbreaking because who knows? There's no other communication. It's not until you see that ship coming back.

[B]

Absolutely.

[A]

Well, Queequeg is going to do most of the instruction for young Greenhorn, and it's very. It's interesting to see the friendship develop. Greenhorn respects Queequeg. Queequeg has a lot to teach him. But one of the things that I learned here is what a Nantucket sleigh ride is.

[B]

Yes, yes, the Nantucket sleigh ride. So on the smaller whale boat is a tub. Melville describes it as a wedding cake. And the rope that is attached to. So we'll take. Queequeg's harpoon is tied to a rope that is wrapped and coiled around this tub on the whaleboat. And when he throws that harpoon, his job is to hit what Melville calls the gold watch, the heart of the whale. Because it's not going to kill the whale instantly. It's a process. It's a little gruesome. But to harpoon the heart of the whale causes it to bleed out. The whale will then swim fast, miles and miles from the main ship until it bleeds out, literally, and dies. So the whaleboat is being pulled by that thrashing whale that's fighting for its life, and it's connected by that rope in Moby Dick. There's all sorts of umbilical cord imagery and birth imagery in this process of catching and rendering a whale. But the Nantucket sleigh ride is the whale pulling that boat, connected by the rope and the harpoon until it dies out. But guess what? Then they're miles from their ship and they have to row this gigantic mammal the size of a city bus all the way back to the Pequod, and then somehow behead it and hoist it back up to process it. Wild sharks, by the way, are chomping at the fresh whale meat.

[A]

Yeah, no wonder you need a full complement of men in the boat, because that rowing back to the ship is quite a challenge. Well, after we've all been filled in on what it takes to actually get your whale that you're after, a whale is sighted it's very exciting. Starbucks wants to lower those whale boats so they can get on with the chase, but it doesn't happen.

[B]

It's not exciting to one person. Ahab's first question is, is it the white whale? Is this Moby Dick?

[A]

That's all he cares about. And when he learns it's not Moby

[B]

Dick, he denies permission to lower for the whale.

[A]

Needless to say, the men in the crew are disappointed, but especially Starbuck, because his worst fears are coming true.

[B]

Mm.

[A]

Our next scene gives us a little time with Ahab himself, and we get a nice piece of music. Here we learn a little bit more about what's going on inside of Ahab. And I found it very interesting to read that our composer, Jake Hegge, said it was when he got a hold of the words for this section of the libretto, this piece of Ahab's mind. This is where he really felt he could compose this song. And then he knew how the rest of the opera was going to work, which I thought was fascinating because these are poignant words largely entirely from Melville himself.

[B]

Yeah. Heggy scrapped the six months of writing he had done prior to this moment where he reread this passage from Moby Dick. And he said it was almost supernatural how he then finished the opera in four months following this because it helped him understand who Ahab was. He no longer saw Ahab as. As an archetype, but as a true human with all of the conflicting elements that make up human nature.

[A]

So may I ask you to read. Do one of your poetic readings of what Ahab is talking to us about. And then we. Then we can hear a little bit of the beginning of this particular piece of music.

[B]

My pleasure. And this is a soliloquy. So this is where it's written in Ahab's voice. So this is Ahab speaking. I leave a white and turbid wake. Pale waters, paler cheeks. Wherever I sail, the envious billows Sidelong swell to whelm my track. Let them. But first I pass. And then we have a description of how Ahab feels weighted down, as if he is wearing the crown of Lombardi on his head. And that is a jagged crown on his head that he's carrying. And then it continues. Dry heat upon my brow. Oh, time was when, as the sunrise nobly spurred me, so the sunset soothed no more. This lovely light it lights not me. All loveliness is anguish to me, since I can never enjoy. Gifted with the high perception, I lack the low enjoying power Damned most subtly and most malignantly damned in the midst

[A]

of paradise A deeply unhappy man Yes,

[C]

I leave a white and turpid wake. Hail water, Hailer cheeks Wherever. I save the envious hills sidelong Swear to wound my track Let my. Sablets ring the warm waves blush like wine the gold brow plums the blue the sun goes down.

[A]

This is opera for everyone, and we are talking about Moby Dick. Talking about the novel, a little bit, honestly, but focusing on the opera by J. Keggy, the 2010 opera. So we have a little bit of insight into Ahab. We're learning about all of these characters, and we're gonna work our way up to seeing the interrelationship between some of our characters, our named characters on this whaling ship, the Pequod, Queequeg, the Polynesian harpooner, and Greenhorn, this guy, as his name implies, who is new to all of this, are teaming up, and Queequeg is going to teach Greenhorn what he needs to know. But we also have interesting things happening between Captain Ahab and his first mate, Starbucks.

[B]

So this is where Starbuck realizes he can't disobey Ahab. It's part of his core belief system that he must obey his superior. And Ahab is acknowledging, recognizing quite gleefully that he now has won Starbuck over in that way. Not that Starbuck is down for this, but that Starbuck really isn't going to mutiny against him.

[C]

Him.

[B]

In fact, Ahab says, my one cogged circle fits into all their various wheels. And they revolve. And Starbuck really has this existential moment of, do I follow him? Do I not follow him? Should I fight him? And he feels powerless, right?

[A]

Because again, out on this ship, the order of command is essential for everyone's safety to obey. But Starbuck thinks Ahab is not going to be a safe captain. Starbuck is in a really hard position.

[B]

Absolutely.

[C]

But must I have. I one called the circle? He calls me with my mind I have no life to cry. I am ready I am ready I am ready.

[B]

So the next scene is three months later, and the sailors are really starting to feel anxious about catching a whale. And Stub sings his joyful song. He's quite the carefree character, and he's wanting. He's jonesing, really, for some whale steak and describing it to young Pip.

[A]

I have to tell you where Pip says tough, rare and bloody over and over again describing this whale. I woke up in the middle of the night after watching this opera humming tough, rare and bloody. The little staccato bit that Pip sings.

[B]

Yes. And Stubb encourages it. Atta boy, Pip.

[A]

Yeah. They're just trying to pass the time, trying to make the best of their situation. And that moves into Flass suggesting a jig. We should have a jig, boys.

[B]

Yes. And these sea shanties that we all know and love come to play. And the men start to dance.

[A]

Yes. Some of them assuming the female half of a partnership in terms of dancing. And one of the things that our libretto tells us, and it's acted out on stage in the opera, and I imagine some of this is described more in the book. And there's not just a distinction between the different roles like the captain and the first mate and the regular crew, but there's also a hardened line between the sailors who are the white Americans, and the people of color, the foreigners, the people who are not the white Americans.

[B]

Absolutely. And this dance is where Melville and then also Scheer bring together that situation that boils over into really focusing on that racial divide. In many ways, Melville presented the Pequod as a microcosm for the United States and this experiment of democracy and the bringing together of so many different immigrant characters on the Pequod really representing America. And here we see that struggle. So they're refusing to dance together. The white sailors are refusing to dance with the sailors of color, and a fight breaks out.

[A]

Yeah. It's fascinating because this was not fictitious in terms of the diversity that would be on a ship like this. This is truly what the crews were made up of. The leadership were all the white Americans, but the vast majority of the crew. There was a big mix.

[B]

Many of the crews that left New Bedford or Nantucket, when they came back, it was a totally different crew. So they were picking people up along the way at the various stops, and they were losing people along the way.

[A]

Well, this frivolity slash fight gets cut short when you hear greenhorn who's up on the masthead head saying, she blows, she blows. He's spotted a whale.

[B]

Huzzah. Huzzah, indeed.

[A]

And Starbuck once again has to confront Ahab, saying, we need to lower the boats. This is why we're here, to get whales.

[B]

But Ahab says, not my whale.

[A]

He does say that, but he relents and he lets them go after this whale.

[B]

Yes, he does. And I love that he does that. It's so strategic because it really. He realizes I have to give them something or mutiny.

[A]

Right. Because they were getting a little goofy there with the whale stakes and the dancing, and he needs to.

[B]

La, la la, la la. Exactly.

[A]

But so much for the cheerfulness. There's purpose and then there's disaster.

[B]

Yes. We have the tragedy of losing Pip, who is ousted from the whaleboat and lost at sea. And this apparently would happen, and it's a triage situation. They would have to sometimes leave a person behind. And this comes to play later in the opera as well, with a different young boy.

[A]

Yes. So Pip is out of the boat and they have their purpose. They have this whale that they have to go after. And there's this amazing scene. The staging in the version that I watched, the filmed version from San Francisco, was just hypnotic. From stagecraft point of view, the swimming is represented by Pip hanging from a suspension from the ceiling. But you have all these projections behind and it's really like he's just in this vast ocean by himself.

[B]

Oh, it's fantastic. The artistry in the stage work here blew me away. You're right, it's hypnotic. Anyone who's ever been in a large body of water floating can relate to what's happening here. And then the enormity of the ocean, this concept of being abandoned. And then also just that he's a little boy. Yeah.

[A]

And that's why we're going to hear a soprano voice.

[C]

Sam,

[A]

You're listening to Opera for Everyone. We're at the halfway point on the show. We'll be back soon to see if we can find that white whale. But in the meantime, please consider supporting this radio station, Khol, during its spring membership drive from 8 March to 15 March. If you're able, jump online at 891 khol.org donate and you'll be offering support for this show and for this precious resource, the Community Radio Khol here in Jackson, Wyoming. Once again, that's 891K H O L.org donate and sincere thanks to everyone. Welcome back to the second half of Opera For Everyone. I am your host, Pat Wright, and I am here with poet and educator Candace Kelsey. Welcome back, Candace.

[B]

Thank you. So great to be here.

[A]

I'm so grateful to you for suggesting Moby Dick. What an education it's been for me.

[B]

Absolutely. I'm such a fan of opera for everyone. It's been so integral into my growing love for opera and Moby Dick is my favorite novel of all time. So to combine the two and to do it with you, Pat, is a dream come true.

[A]

That is very kind of you to say. It is my hope that this helps invite more people into enjoying opera.

[B]

Absolutely.

[A]

That's the goal. That's the goal. Well, before we carry on with our story, we want to take a minute and thank the people who were involved in the creation of these musical clips that we've been listening to. We've been working from two different recordings, primarily from the world premiere in Dallas 2010. But one of the co commissioners of this opera was the State Opera of South Australia, and that was in 2011 that that premiered and operated. A few of our songs have come from that recording that played on radio there. And just to identify those recordings, that was I Leave a White and Turbid Wake, that Ahab sings the shanty farewell to the Spanish Ladies that we heard at the end of the prior half. And upcoming there'll be a choral piece called Lost in the Heart of the Sea. So those clips are coming from that South Australia production. It's the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra that plays there with the State Opera Chorus conductor Timothy Sexton. Ahab is sung by J. Hunter Morris, Starbuck by Grant Doyle, and Greenhorn by James Egglestone. But most of our clips come from the 2010 Dallas recording and that has conductor Patrick Summers with the Dallas Opera Orchestra and their Men's chorus.

[B]

The role of Captain Ahab is played by Ben Heppner. Starbuck is played by Morgan Smith. Greenhorn is Steven Costello. The role of Queequeg is played by Jonathan Lamalu. Flask is Matthew o'. Neill. Stub is Robert Orth. The role of Pip are one female performer, Talise Trevine and Captain Gardener by Jonathan Byer.

[A]

Yeah, we haven't met Captain Gardner yet, but we will.

[B]

Yes, we will.

[A]

Thank you everyone for the beautiful music that we're listening to. It's such a treat.

[B]

Indeed. What a gift.

[A]

Okay, you know what time it is or do you?

[B]

I'm assuming it's time for the Opera Helmet quiz.

[A]

It is time for the Opera Helmet Quiz. Who's the quizzer and who's the quizzee?

[B]

I would love to be the quizzer, if you don't mind.

[A]

Oh. In your role as educator.

[B]

There you go. Well, I don't have a complicated quiz question for you, but I do want to test how sharp your harpoon is. So tell us, Pat, what has happened so far?

[A]

I confess I'm utterly a landlubber. Well, we are entirely in this show on the Pequod, this great whaling ship that has set sail from Nantucket, and we have an interesting cast of characters. We don't meet the captain of the ship, an important role, but we don't meet him right away. We start off with Queequeg, the harpooner the Polynesian harpooner and greenhorn. This young man who's new to whaling. They start off rocky, but clearly become friends pretty quickly. When Ahab appears, he gives a nice pep talk, but he makes it very clear that his main goal is not making money through rendering the whale blubber into that very valuable oil. There's a particular whale he's looking for, and it is described as the white whale. So they'll know it when they see it. I mean, there may be other white whales, but he is the white whale, as far as we know. And it quickly comes to light that this is the whale who has taken off his leg, which is why he walks with a. Actually, I think it's from whalebone that they make his leg. We didn't talk about that.

[B]

But indeed, it is made out of whalebone.

[A]

Oh, my gosh. That's. Yeah.

[B]

Anyway, so there's this whole. This whole concept of Ahab is actually becoming the whale.

[A]

He is turning into a bit of a brute himself. At any rate, when they first sight a whale, which is the whole reason they're out there, Ahab does not permit them to go after the whale because he is single minded in his focus that it must be Moby Dick. And they're not. He's not after the money. He is after vengeance. Starbuck, his first mate, is perplexed by this. That's putting it mildly. He's perplexed and very upset and even considers it to be a little bit blasphemous to have him treat a whale, this beast and give it human emotions that Ahab thinks that he can get vengeance on an animal. It doesn't make any sense to Starbuck. Well, the men spend time on the ship. That's all they've got to do. They amuse themselves by dreaming about whale steak. Because, after all, they have not been permitted to hunt for whales. So there's been no whale meat for them. They dance a little bit. We see a little bit of the tension among different people on the ship. Particularly, there's a racial component to that tension. But that all stops when a whale is sighted. And Ahab finally relents and says, okay, all right, fine. You can lower the boats and go after the whale. And they do, in the tumult of all that. The cabin boy, Pip, our one female voice, a soprano who plays the cabin boy, dumped out of the boat, lost at sea. And the men have to go get that whale back to the ship. It's heartbreaking and kind of a cliffhanger. We left on with Pip out floating in the ocean.

[B]

Well done. You get a perfect score.

[A]

Oh, nice.

[B]

And a gold star sticker, of course.

[A]

Thank you.

[B]

And a whale stake, of course.

[A]

Oh, I'll pass on that. I'm sure you do.

[B]

Yes. Tough, rare and bloody. Well, well done.

[A]

Thank you. Well, poor Pip. Does Pip float forever in the ocean?

[B]

No, he is spotted and he is rescued, thankfully. But he is not the same Pip that he was before. He spent that time really facing his own mortality out in the middle of the ocean.

[A]

Yeah, because he thought he was left for dead. And it is interesting that the physical rescue takes place and it is through heroic efforts of Queequeg, strong and right minded man that he is. He puts himself at risk in order to rescue Pip and he does rescue

[B]

Pip, but he earns our everlasting respect as the hero figure, which is what I love about what Heggie and Scheer did in this opera. They really put Queequeg at the forefront as well as Pip as incredibly noble characters.

[A]

Yeah. Well, we couldn't leave you hanging worrying about Pip's fate. But I want to back up and talk just a moment about what happens on the ship before the actual rescue of Pip, which is this amazing scene, which I understand is described in great detail in the novel, of what happens once they actually bring a whale back to the main whaling ship and it turns into that factory you mentioned earlier. Yes.

[B]

So now that they have the whale carcass and they've beheaded it. And Melville has a beautiful description of it in Moby Dick where the skinning of the blubber of the whale is done in a method that he describes as similar to peeling an orange. In several turns, the skin comes right off into what's called a blanket, a blanket of blubber that they then have to chop into small stakes. And while they're rendering it into oil, they're feeding the fire with more of the flesh of the whale. So the whale itself is almost cannibalistically cooking itself down on the ship and a lot of times at night. And so you just see, imagine the view if you had a drone to witness. This would just be this fiery inferno out in the middle of the ocean with smoke and grease and men working.

[A]

Yeah. And there's this wonderful. It just stopped me in my tracks when I was watching this opera, this wonderful choral piece that the men sing repeatedly, in fact. And we'll just listen to a little bit of it. This lost in the heart of the sea, rolling in white capped waves. And honestly, we're thinking of Pip at this point, because this is before Pip has come back onto the ship. But Lost in the Heart of the Sea is the beginning and ending line of that. And that is also the name of a book, the Heart of the Sea. That author Nathaniel Philbrick wrote the Heart of the Sea, very much about these same sorts of men and what they experience when they are lost at sea.

[B]

Absolutely. It's the true story of the whale ship Essex that was stove and sunk by a sperm whale. Apparently, according to the archives, they have of firsthand experiences a vengeful sperm whale who stove the boat and sunk it and the journey of those who survived to make it back to land in South America. And Philbrick is a well known Melville scholar and lover of Moby Dick. And so his book in the Heart of the Sea is fantastic. The phrase in the heart of the sea does come from the book of Job. And Melville took that and used that in the novel. And so of course, Philbrooke took it. And here we have Gene Shearer taking it.

[C]

Holy. In the. Sea.

[A]

On board the Pequot here in Moby Dick. It's a mournful kind of a scene because even though we've told you Pip will be rescued on the boat, they're rendering the whale oil. We've just heard that sad song that the sailors are singing together in chorus. And Starbuck is realizing that when Ahab talks about he is missing, he's not talking about the cabin boy, Pip, he's talking about the whale.

[B]

Right. He says he is out there waiting to be found. And we're thinking anybody with a conscience is thinking it's the little boy, Pip. But he's thinking Moby Dick.

[A]

He's thinking Moby Dick. And then Starbuck realizes there's another problem. The barrels are leaking. They need to go into port and have the barrels repaired so that they don't lose all this oil, which is the whole supposed purpose of this boat being out at sea.

[B]

And of course, Ahab has a comeback. Let him leak. I am all a leak myself. Yeah, as if that's an answer.

[A]

Right? Exactly. He doesn't care about the things that Starbuck cares about. And Ahab even gets to the point where he equates himself as captain of the boat to God.

[B]

Oh, absolutely.

[A]

Which is shocking to our Quaker, Starbuck.

[B]

Yes, it's a. It's another level of hubris that I don't think Starbuck was prepared for. And Ahab takes it to the next level.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

And orders Starbuck to his knees and points a musket at his head.

[A]

It's a powerful moment. It is a very powerful moment. This strong man, this first mate, is brought to his knees. He obeys, not because he's the captain specifically, but because he doesn't really have another choice. He has a musket pointed at him, and he begins to pray because he thinks his life is about to end. And then that finally is broken when we have the shouts of, we found Pip. We've found Pip. Well, we've already described the fact that Pip has been saved, but he's not entirely himself. The trauma has been too much for Pip, and we'll see a little bit more from Pip later. But then we have Greenhorn, who has a chance to think a little bit about his situation and not just admire and show gratitude towards his friend Queequeg, who put himself out there, risked his own life in order to save Pip. But we see him really considering what it means to be a good person and what you may consider a pagan. All right. They may not be just like you, but the morality of that man is so clear.

[B]

Absolutely. And he even questions, was I rescued by Christian kindness or a pagan hand? Rhetorical question. Both Ishmael and Pip have witnessed and experienced this humanity from a pagan.

[A]

Yeah. And realizing that maybe that's not the insult they thought it was.

[B]

Correct. Exactly. Meanwhile, you have Ahab and Starbuck in their own situation. And I think it's so interesting that Starbuck is on his knees and beginning to pray. This is where you see a lot of the influence Shakespeare had on Melville, because this scene is straight out of Hamlet, when Hamlet is going to kill Claudius while Claudius is praying. And he thinks, oh, I don't want him to go to heaven, so I can't kill him while he's praying. Also, remember, the opera started with Queequeg in his pagan prayer. And now we have Starbuck praying and Ishmael contemplating Christianity and what kindness means.

[A]

Yeah. And our act will end with a scene that you almost knew had to be there. The scene where Ahab almost kills Starbuck is flipped. In this final scene of the first act, Starbuck goes down to talk to Captain Ahab again. Two of them alone, but Ahab is asleep.

[B]

Yes. This is the musket chapter from Moby Dick. It's one of my favorite. Here we have, front and center, the moral conundrum that Starbuck is in. He knows that he has an opportunity to shoot Ahab in his sleep and potentially save the entire crew and get back to see his wife Mary and his son. But that offends everything that makes up the core of who Starbuck is. His Quaker values. Murder is wrong. He knows that murdering another human is wrong, but, boy, is he tempted. He knows it's one click of the

[A]

trigger, and he believes that that would save the rest of the crew. And goodness knows, it might have. But he does ask. He says, oh, Lord, is it murder to strike a would be murderer in his bed? That's a strong question for anyone to contemplate, honestly.

[B]

Absolutely. I mean, it really gets to the heart of most moral questions and philosophical quandaries.

[A]

Yeah. But Ahab makes a sound. He's sort of crying in his sleep, almost like he's having a nightmare. And Starbuck just can't do it. And that's how we end the first act.

[B]

What an act it is.

[A]

On to Act 2. There's a booming interlude that gets us into Act 2, and we are told that it is one year later. So these men have been out to sea for over a year, and just

[B]

to keep things interesting, we start with a storm. Quite a squall.

[A]

Yeah. Always a danger when you're out on the open ocean. And Queequeg is a little appalled at the behavior of the men on the ship who just seem to be laughing and joking about it.

[B]

All right, he can't contemplate how this can all just be a big joke to them. But it launches us into this amazing conversation between Queequeg and Greenhorn, where Greenhorn, for the first time, shows a really sincere interest in learning more about Queequeg.

[A]

You really get a sense that Melville is taking this right from his own experience when, as you mentioned earlier, he jumps ship in order to stay in these islands. Greenhorn says, I want to go to your island. I want to see where you're from. Because he admires his friends so much. And also he has a sense of adventure.

[B]

Absolutely. And then it brings up the concept of naming. Greenhorn shares again that he really has no name, no identity, no family, no ties on land. And Queequeg assures him, friend, everyone has a name.

[C]

Your. Word.

[A]

I.

[C]

It.

[B]

So this is that poignant moment that solidifies this beautiful friendship, unlikely friendship between Greenhorn and Queequeg.

[A]

Yeah, my only friend on the Earth, says Greenhorn. Well, this beautiful moment can't last, can it?

[B]

Of course not. It's the opera and we're on the high seas, and it's Melville and everything,

[A]

everything is conspiring for some more drama. The drama is that Queequeg becomes quite sick and he's not just standing on deck of the ship. He's up in the high in the mast, as is Greenhorn. They're both up there, high in the mast, different masts, right.

[B]

And he literally collapses. Imagine for Jonathan Lamalu and anyone else who's playing Queequeg, to just completely collapse and count on the rigging to hold you had to be really terrifying. I'm also so fascinated by how the actors, especially Talise Trevine, who had to be suspended 30ft above the stage while singing. To me, that is similar to these sailors having to man the mastheads 50ft above the deck and above the ocean in a terrifying situation. One slip and they fall. And that's one of the chapters that is not in the opera, the masthead chapter. It's quite beautiful and it really gives a feel for what that's like to man a masthead that high above the ocean.

[A]

It's terrifying and terrifying for Greenhorn, who's seeing his friend in trouble, but he's up high also. He's too far away to help. It has to be other crew members who help. And Ahab is just saying, everybody, get back to work. Get back to work. No, he wants none of this. He wants none of it. He just wishes it never happened. But finally, he does relent and allow Greenhoard to go climb down and care for his friend. Yes, as you said before, every once in a while Ahab realizes he needs to back off a little bit to keep the sympathies of the crew from turning against him.

[B]

Yes. And Ahab knows that Queequeg is one of his sure shot harpooners that can help him get Moby Dick.

[A]

That's right. And while Greenhorn is seeing to his friend, trying to make him comfortable, doing whatever he can to aid his recovery, Queequeg makes a very strong request. Demand that the carpenter make a coffin for him.

[B]

Exactly. But yet he's not afraid. And he tells Greenhorn not to be afraid, but that he needs a coffin made so that he can be properly cared for when he dies. He's fully convinced he's dying, right?

[A]

And so he wants to do it right. He wants to have a coffin with all of the things a coffin should have in it for his proper burial. Greenhorn doesn't argue against him. But again, no spoilers. In opera, Queequeg does not die here. He in fact recovers. And it doesn't tell us in the libretto, but I understand in the book, the coffin becomes a sea chest for a short period of time. Where Queequeg just keeps his belongings in this coffin.

[B]

Exactly. And he also, in the novel, carves it with the exact replicas of the tattoos that are on his skin, so that the coffin almost looks like. And has the same markings that have meaning to him. Of course, Queequeg on the coffin. And in the novel, the reason he doesn't die is he pops up and says he remembered he had another task to accomplish back on land.

[A]

What a great reason not to die.

[B]

I like that he left the iron on.

[A]

My work here is not done.

[B]

Right.

[A]

But again, this is not depicted in the opera. And it wasn't until I learned more about the book that I understood the ending of the opera with the coffin, which will be absolutely key. At one point, when someone has gone overboard and they try to send the lifebuoy out to them, it's in such disrepair that it essentially disintegrates.

[B]

Right.

[A]

And Queequeg offers to allow his coffin to be used for the lifebuoy after that. So they have something to save sailors who've dropped overboard.

[B]

Exactly. And it's a whole concept of. In death, there is life and this theme of resurrection that Melville's so good at writing about.

[A]

Yeah. And I think it's very helpful to know that, to understand what happens later on in the opera. Cause I didn't, and I was a little confused. So that coffin then becomes this life buoy for the Pequod.

[B]

Right.

[A]

In the next scene, we've got this mighty storm threatening all of them.

[B]

And the storm is one of those mythic St. Elmo's fire storms where you see this luminescence extending from the tips of all the mast heads. So it's really quite supernal, you know?

[A]

It is. I actually, because I was familiar with the song more than anything else about St. Elmo's fire. I looked up and I was stunned to see some bits on YouTube about people who'd filmed a St. Elmo's fire. It looks a bit like lightning. It does, but not. Yes and no. Sort of like lightning.

[B]

Coleridge writes about it in the Rime of the Ancient Mariner. There's this whole beautiful description in that poem about this luminescence.

[A]

And Ahab just takes it as a sign. It's lighting the way to the white whale.

[B]

Of course. What else would it be doing? Because, you know, nature obeys Ahab's wishes.

[A]

Well, that's what Ahab thinks, but Starbucks sees it as an ill omen. We need to get home. We need to get home.

[B]

Yes. Not Good.

[A]

Well, next we do hear from this captain, this unseen captain of a different boat, the Rachel. Captain Gardner. And he calls to Captain Ahab. They seem to know each other.

[B]

Right?

[A]

But Gardner has a plea for Ahab, who we know is not terribly receptive to pleas.

[B]

Right. Sadly, Gardiner's son, his 12 year old boy, got ejected from one of the whaleboats a la Pip style, and has been missing since the storm the day before. Talk about being lost in the heart of the sea. And he's begging Ahab, even offering to pay to charter the Pequot, for them to search for the boy, to join in the search and try to find him.

[A]

Honestly, in my read of the libretto, this is when you just have to give up on Ahab 100% because he is so single minded that he won't give any time to look for this boy, who they may very well find if they have two boats searching. And the brave and heroic Queequeg. Who knows what he could do if the boat were to stick around and look for this boy.

[B]

In one of the chapters, Ahab describes himself as a great, godlike, godless man. And this is the moment where that really fits him. And also that he's madness maddened. He says he's madness maddened. There's these moments in literature where a character really makes a huge transformation. In Frankenstein, the creation, the being that is created really isn't a monster until the key moment when he strangles Victor Frankenstein's little brother. And at that moment you can no longer call him the being and many readers call him a monster from that moment forward. Here, I believe, is the moment for Ahab when he denies helping a fellow captain look for his 12 year old son in the ocean, which would cost him nothing but maybe a day of looking for Moby Dick. It's monstrous.

[A]

It is monstrous and it's pitiful. As Gardner is pleading and saying everything he can think. And then there's Pip who shows up. And Pip is like, I saw him. But Pip isn't making a lot of sense. He's left his tambourine ding dong, ding dong. I don't know how to make it sing. And at first Gardner's like, you've seen him? Where did you see him? Which way? But then he realizes Pip is not all right in the head at this point. And it becomes particularly clear to us, the audience, that that's also what's going on, that Pip is not right and Gardner is just left to scream after Ahab as Ahab sails away.

[B]

Absolutely. And I think Pip is the product of a serious traumatic incident. This is a post traumatic stress response. And Gardner is realizing he's got no one here that is making any sense that can help him. And he's so desperate. In the Romantic era, the child was considered sacred and precious. And so when you locate the novel in the Romantic time period of the 19th century, you realize this would be so offensive to those ideals that the child is to be protected and is innocent. And here we have in this novel, Pip just left floating in the ocean. Gardner's son just left floating in the ocean. And they're both children.

[A]

Yeah. You don't have to be in the 19th century to find it horrifying.

[B]

Correct.

[A]

And we move on to Ahab forging his own spear. To me, it seems Wagnerian almost, but he forges his own spear and uses Latin to baptize the spear not in the name of the father, but in the name of the devil. Talk about a monster here. Yes, but it's part of this quest, this obsession.

[B]

Absolutely. He is channeling his inner demon. And it's interesting that he wipes down this harpoon with the blood from Pip's hands. He's forging it with the blood of a child.

[A]

Yeah, Because Pip has hurt himself and gone up to. Yeah, the blood is there. It's just. It's creepy in the extreme. It's creepy. And you realize how monstrous Ahab has become because just as after so much time at sea, the crew gets a little goofy with their songs and their imaginings of whale stake. Ahab has been at this for a long time and the frustration has been built up in him.

[B]

And this brings to light this concept of human madness, the obsession, the facing death. And greenhorn questions. Is man's insanity heaven's sense?

[A]

Yeah, man's insanity. Is heaven's sanity heaven's sense. It's a fascinating contemplation for him. Here is when we return to that very same set of lines that we highlighted earlier with the chorus singing Lost in the heart of the sea. Rolling in white capped waves, Rising and falling, gasping, calling to shadows. Shadows. But this is Greenhorn by himself singing this. And it doesn't have the same beauty and lilt it did when the chorus was singing it.

[B]

And remember, he is sitting inside Queequeg's coffin as he sings this.

[A]

Yes,

[C]

I see. Sa. Rolling white cap.

[A]

Well, Greenhorn is debating with himself the important things in life. And we're going to have another scene with these two powerful men on the ship, Ahab and Starbuck. It's Called the Symphony. Which is interesting because that's also the title of the chapter in the book, I believe.

[B]

Yes, it is.

[A]

What's symphonic about it?

[B]

I believe it's the coming together of these two competing voices. Two competing motivations and goals. And yet they join together with this similar purpose of loving their wives and their sons. And imagining coming home to them. And so it's another moment of Ahab's humanity. And he even looks into Starbucks eyes and says, let me look into a human eye. So it's a moment of this merging back into the humanity. So in a symphony of many different instruments coming together to make a beautiful sound. You have a beautiful sound coming from Ahab. He's picturing his beautiful son and wife and coming home to Nantucket. And that's symphonic. It's a beautiful sound.

[A]

It's so powerful, this scene. The music is lyrical. But you begin to think that maybe Ahab can pull back from being that monster. And Starbuck is thinking the very same thing. He sees this point of connection, similarity, humanity with Ahab. And he thinks, oh, well, maybe I can use my own charisma and convince him to see the things that matter more in life than vengeance against a whale.

[B]

Yes. He exacts his own efforts of rhetoric and persuasion on him. Just as Ahab did to him earlier.

[A]

It's a lovely, lovely duet. Where you think perhaps Ahab is going to be on board. Talking about summer days, mild and blue. Remembering Nantucket and the experience of the boy, the son, waiting for the ship to come home. And the mother, the wife that's also waiting. It seems beautiful. And you want hope against hope for. I mean, that's. It's like whenever I see Romeo and Juliet, I really want them to wake up and, you know, be happy. Right?

[B]

Absolutely.

[A]

This is one of those moments.

[B]

This is one of those moments. And it's also, again, about a child. It's their children that are uniting them ever so briefly. Ever so briefly. Although Ahab does allow Starbuck. Or order Starbuck to not lower when they find Moby Dick in an effort to save him. He knows he cannot save himself from his vengeance. But he wants to show some compassion to Starbuck. Which I think is an interesting legacy for Ahab to leave behind.

[A]

If only it were successful. Well,

[B]

there's that.

[A]

There's that. Let's hear a little bit of these. These two tenors. This Helden tenor and this lyric tenor. Singing together for a moment with a single purpose.

[C]

Oh, Captain, Grand Old Fart. After all, why should anyone give chase to that hated Fish, let me on to the forester. How cheerily, how hilariously will we bowl on our way to see old man's. Sat on such my blue days even as this in old and Tupac day. Some summer days in the morning. Some summer days my. And.

[A]

There she blows. She blows. Yells Ahab. He has been looking out. And this is the moment you told us would happen. Ahab cites Moby Dick.

[B]

Yes. Finally.

[A]

Like a hump on a snow hill.

[B]

Yes, Right.

[A]

And Starbuck tries to call him back to the moment that they just had together. Starbuck says, but Captain, the boy's face in the window. And Starbuck says, the boy on the hill watching for his father's sale. And Starbuck is unsuccessful in pulling Ahab back to that reality that they shared for a short time.

[B]

And Ahab even admits that it's not him. He's not in charge anymore. He asks, what remorseless emperor commands me is Ahab. Ahab? And I find that so disheartening that he has lost such control of himself. He does not even consciously deciding to go after the whale. There's something driving him.

[A]

Yeah. It's like an addict that can't shake it. And it's just so crushing for poor Starbuck because he. He thought maybe he would get himself and the rest of the crew back home.

[C]

She blows.

[B]

She blows.

[C]

It cannot be a hump like a snow again. It is j.

[A]

The crew gets very excited because, after all, that's why they're out there, to hunt whales. And this is the whale they've heard so much about. And even Stub says, whale stake tonight.

[B]

I love that Stub.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And they're also excited about the doubloon.

[A]

Right? Except Ahab claims it for himself, of course, because he spotted the whale first. Fair is fair, right?

[B]

Finders keepers.

[A]

Yeah. And Queequeg says he's not afraid. The battle's to come. That's part of what he sang when he was training greenhorn. And you get this sense that, oh, we are really coming to this. Heightened drama, intensity. And Ahab does exactly what you said. He says, Mr. Starbuck, you will not be in the boat that lowers. Because Starbuck typically commands one of those three boats with Queequeg as the harpooner. And Ahab says, no, men, lift me into this boat. I'm going to take that position. You stay with the big ship. Somebody has to stay with it, Mr. Starbuck. It'll be you.

[B]

And this is where the opera differs a little from the novel. Because there is a character in the Novel called Fadallah. And he was a stowaway, a secret ringer, harpooner that Ahab had brought along for this very moment in particular to capture Moby Dick. Scheer left that out and I think it was wise. What he did is he built the Fidala, who is another South Pacific Islander character, but he built him into Pip in that Pip has these prophecies. Pip offers the prophecy that Ahab will die by hempen rope. And that was really what Fedallah offered in the novel. And so I love to see how Sheare conflated some of these characters to make it fit this two act opera.

[A]

Right.

[B]

Well done.

[A]

Yeah. It is a talent to be able to tell a story effectively and dramatically with all of the tension that you want in a good story, which was in the book. But it's a beautiful translation from book to libretto for this opera. It's amazing. But the men are all utterly excited about this possibility of getting this long sought after whale.

[B]

And then we have what we could argue as the main character, main character energy shooting up from the ocean. And we see it in digital projection, this giant eye movie Dick.

[A]

Yeah, right. Because he's so much larger than these small men on this huge ocean by comparison, this whale, he slowly comes into focus and everyone on ship is singing about this noble fight. We're going to destroy this evil, this evil that is this white whale. Starbuck, of course, not included.

[B]

Right.

[A]

But it doesn't work out the way they're expecting or hoping.

[B]

It certainly doesn't.

[C]

Prepare to go. Without touch. And. You. Happy for one instance. La. Ram. Sa.

[B]

So Moby Dick breaches and is ferocious. Ahab's boat is lifted on the back of Moby Dick. This is so beautifully imagined on the stage with this half pipe stage, the whale boats and the men falling and tumbling, and Ahab facing Moby Dick finally. And his famous line to the last. I grapple with thee. From hell's heart I will stab at thee. But as he stabs Moby Dick, the line that we talked about earlier that created that Nantucket sleigh ride, that line goes awry and it wraps around Ahab's neck and straps him to the side of Moby Dick. So he is literally attached to the very thing he hates. And Moby Dick takes him under. And that's it for Aho and the

[A]

rest of the crew. Almost right.

[B]

Because Moby Dick, of course, slams like a battering ram into the Pequod and sinks it into this Charybdis whirlpool.

[A]

Yeah. All of the whaleboats are tossed and everyone is lost at sea except one man. And that's the epilogue scene of our opera.

[B]

Yes. Greenhorn singing the same Samoan prayer that Queequeg was singing in the opening scene.

[A]

Yeah. After all of this chaos, all of this energy, everything calms down. And he's singing as he's lying on top of Queequeg's unused coffin, the thing that had become the lifebuoy actually saves the life of Greenhorn.

[B]

What a scene.

[A]

What a scene. And then we hear that offstage voice again, Captain Gardner. It's almost heartbreaking.

[B]

It's absolutely heartbreaking. He thinks that he's found his son and it's Greenhorn. But it's also a wonderful redemption scene because Gardner is happy to save Greenhorn. When Gardner lifts Greenhorn up and saves him onto his ship, the Rachel, he asks him his name. And here is the moment where Greenhorn claims Call me Ishmael.

[A]

I just got shivers when you said that, and I knew it was coming.

[B]

Thank you. It's absolutely genius that Peggy and Sheer had the Call me Ishmael come at the end because then that allows Ishmael to tell the story. And it's that cyclical narrative that is so uniquely Moby Dick.

[A]

Right. And because we start out on that boat, the whole story is moving forward as opposed to telling it backwards from the end. And we're just enjoying this story. And it's. I think it's very touching that this man who's clearly lost his son has found another young man who doesn't have a family. So there's this little bit of hope that you get with two people coming together at the end, one who's only a voice in the opera, but it's just. It's beautiful.

[B]

Absolutely. And it ends with an act of human kindness and it just ties everything together so beautifully.

[A]

Yeah. Well, Candace, thank you again for suggesting Moby Dick to me. Thank you for getting me into this great American novel, this amazing opera. What a show, what a story, what a lot of things we have to think about. I'm just so grateful. Thank you so much.

[B]

It has absolutely been my pleasure. And the gratitude all goes to you for being a good sport, for responding to my pestering emails, and for embracing Melville and Moby Dick in such a full hearted way. It just makes me so happy. Brings me a lot of joy and a lot of hope.

[A]

Yeah. Well. And I want to say a shout out to all of your students over the years how lucky they were to have you.

[B]

Thank you. So much. I appreciate that. We certainly have had fun.

[A]

Well, thanks everyone for joining us for this episode of Opera for Everyone.

[C]

Sa. My joy. My boy, I have found you. Dear God, every star is my can you hear me? My boy, my boy, my boy, my boy. Yes, I am here. Over here. I am here. This is not I am here. I am free.

[A]

Thanks for listening to this episode of Opera for Everyone. If you've missed any of today's show, you can find us as a podcast where you'll find this show and many others. And while you're there, please take a moment to subscribe, write a comment. It helps others to find us. I have one other request of you. If you'd like to support our show, please consider supporting the radio station that is the home station of Opera for everyone, 8901 Khol in Jackson, Wyoming. Pledge Drive is happening right now from March 8th to March 15th. Just go to 891k h l.org donate and offer your support if you're able. Opera is for everyone and so is community radio. That's 8091 khol.org donate and thank you.

[C]

Sam.