I have already reported below, on Performance Lab 115's adaption of the Ring as a WWF wrestling event (which is at least intelligent, satirical and somewhat amusing) but in a more bizarre turn of events the ROH have just released a promo video (part of their new "World Stage 2012/ 2013" marketing campaign) featuring Jonas Kaufmann promoting McVicker's new production of Les Troyens: cheap pop music playing in the background, set in a boxing ring and looking for all the world like a promo for some cheap teen aftershave. Indeed, it is difficult at first, to be sure what it is actually "selling". You might want to checkout the campaigns promo for Thomas Allen in Hansel and Gretel also below.
Most of the promos in this campaign, while featuring what are without doubt serious and world class performers, play anything but "classical music" in their respective soundtracks. Perhaps this is the ROH's new way of getting a "young" audience to the opera and ballet: show them videos featuring "slick" images, full of seizure inducing fast edits but for goodness sake don't show them anything that might put them off coming - like the actual music. The future of opera "marketing"? You decide, but it should at least keep those happy that can manage to endure the "Classical" Brit Awards without a compulsion to turn the sound down and play
Rammstein over the visuals - or is that just me? .
