Order of the Stick - the Opera

[Asta Kask]

Let's say we make an opera from the OotS comic - what voices would the various characters sing in? Especially That Guy with a Halberd. :smalltongue:

[Cuthalion]

Roy would be a tenor
Elan would be a higher tenor
Durkon would be a baritone
Haley's a soprano
V's an alto
Belkar is probably another tenor

Redcloak... tenor.
Xykon could be a bass, maybe
Tsukiko was a high soprano

Tarquin is a tenor
So is Nale
Thog is bass
Sabine is mezzosoprano
Z, contralto
Kobolds are Altos
Laurin's an alto

Enor is a tenor
Gannji is bass

[Grey Watcher]

Alright, here are my thoughts on the core cast. Might update with Team Evil, Linear Guild, or other characters later.


Roy Greenhilt - Verdi/Puccini baritone - He's got a nice, resonant voice, but can go up for impressive high notes. Comparable roles: Rigoletto (Rigoletto), Scarpia (Tosca)
Elan - lyric tenor - Less drama and profundity than Roy, but versatile enough to do both the dramatic parts and the silly parts. Comparable roles: Alfredo (La Traviata), Edgardo (Lucia di Lammermoor)
Haley Starshine - lyric soprano - mostly to pair her properly with Elan. Given her plotlines, she might call for a bigger/heavier/more dramatic/[insert preferred terminology here] voice. Comparable roles: Violetta (La Traviata), Mimi (La Boheme)
Vaarsuvius - contralto or countertenor - basically your typical "pants role" or former castrato role, to best capture the gender ambiguity. Comparable roles: Prince Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus), Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro)
Durkon Thundershield- basso buffo - Being a dwarf, he's gotta have a deeper voice than any of the human characters, and I think that giving him that kind of "safe" character would best set up the drama of the vampirization plot. Comparable roles: Don Magnifico (La Cenerentola), Leporello (Don Giovanni)
Belkar Bitterleaf - tenore buffo - He's comedy gold! He's the only funny thing left in this stirp! Seriously though, Belkar's only palatable if you can hold his antics at arms length and laugh, so let's make him the kind of role audiences are used to laughing at. Comparable roles: Goro (Madama Butterfly), Beppe (Pagliacci)

[Asta Kask]

I agree with Cuthalion, I think Roy should be the heldentenor.

[Grey Watcher]

I agree with Cuthalion, I think Roy should be the heldentenor.

Eh, it's all pretty subjective, but to me, while Roy is the hero, he's not really a showy, dramatic tenor kind of hero, singing love duets at the top his lungs with Brunhilde or screaming Turandot's name over an entire chorus and orchestra. He's more... down to earth. He is, after all, the straight man and snarky commentator to a cast full of very silly people, so to me a baritone voice seems a better fit than a tenor. (Let's face it, whether we're built for Rossini or Wagner, we're a very showy lot.) Plus I'd worry that that big and heavy a voice, placed next to not-big and not-heavy voices (like Elan's) would just sound out of place.

If I were going to use a helden tenor, I might actually use him for Xykon or the Monster in the Darkness, to create a sort of super-human effect. Or maybe just to underscore O-Chul's sheer badassery. (Plus, given how MitD convinced Xykon not to kill Roy at the ruins of the pyramid, it'd be funny if the side character O-Chul had a more stereotypically heroic voice than the actual hero. :smalltongue:)

[Socksy]

Trying to sort each group from lowest to highest:

Roy is a bass
Durkon is a baritone/bass
Belkar is a baritone
Elan is a tenor/baritone
V is a tenor/alto
Haley is a soprano.

Thog is a bass
Nale is a bass/baritone
Sabine is an alto
Zzz is a countertenor
Hilgya is a soprano.

MitD is a bass
Redcloak is a baritone
Xykon is a tenor, but most of his lines are sprechgezang (sp?)
Jirix is a tenor
Tsukiko is a coloratura.

Tarquin is a bass/baritone
SPG is a baritone
Miron is a tenor
Laurin is an alto
Malack is a male alto
Jacinda is a soprano

[martianmister]

I prefer a musical.

[Socksy]

How about a pantomime!

[HeeJay]

Talking about heldentenors, yes, O-Chul would be a good candidate. But you haven't thought of the best candidate for being a heldentenor:

Soon Kim.

"Ghost-Martyrs of the Sapphire Guard - ATTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!"

[Asta Kask]

Trying to sort each group from lowest to highest:

Roy is a bass
Durkon is a baritone/bass
Belkar is a baritone
Elan is a tenor/baritone
V is a tenor/alto
Haley is a soprano.

Thog is a bass
Nale is a bass/baritone
Sabine is an alto
Zzz is a countertenor
Hilgya is a soprano.

MitD is a bass
Redcloak is a baritone
Xykon is a tenor, but most of his lines are sprechgezang (sp?)
Jirix is a tenor
Tsukiko is a coloratura.

Tarquin is a bass/baritone
SPG is a baritone
Miron is a tenor
Laurin is an alto
Malack is a male alto
Jacinda is a soprano

I see Xykon as a very, very deep bass myself. Bad guys are often basses.

[Socksy]

I see Xykon as a very, very deep bass myself. Bad guys are often basses.

Ah, it was just how I pictured their voices, and he's a skeleton. Lich, whatever.

But VeryBass!Xykon sounds... awesome.

[Porthos]

Ah, it was just how I pictured their voices, and he's a skeleton. Lich, whatever.

But VeryBass!Xykon sounds... awesome.

Xykon commented in SoD that if he pitched his voice just a little bit lower it would sound like James Earl Jones.

[Quartz]

V is definitely in the countertenor range at the start. Whether actually a tenor or a soprano is only revealed later.