Something that I found to be interesting among the three is the different expressions of art and how they are each just as effective in communicating their message. I think that Scenes From The Latin Quarter and Rent have the most similarities in the way that they both discuss themes of love and poverty in connection to art. Personally, I enjoy it when people fuse love and art which I saw heavily in Patti Smith’s “Just Kids” so I found that I enjoyed Scenes From The Latin Quarter and Rent the most. Honestly, I was not a big fan of the Opera Lecture because as much as I appreciate the skill that goes into it, it is not something that fascinates me. The lecture did help me understand the evolution of Opera and how it came to be which I did like. For example, I liked the late 1880s style which dealt which romantic themes and “verismo” style. The transition of focus from monarchs and myths to common folk was what I enjoyed most because it delve into raw themes like passion, love, and lust. The example of Pavarotti was amazing and you can easily see the artist’s emotion. Even though I didn’t understand the lyrics, while reading the subtitles and observing his emotion I could feel what he was trying to portray in the opera. I liked Rent the most because I actually enjoy musicals and this was particularly interesting to watch. I really liked it because they had a song called “Seasons of Love” that I had no idea was from this movie so the entire time I was jamming out and knew the whole song. The movie overall had similar these to the book Scenes From The Latin Quarter because in the beginning they mention their inability to pay rent which was the same in the book and how they have to live off little. I also liked the shared bohemian theme, what I found admirable is that in Rent they stayed together despite their inability to pay rent and kept on producing art. There were a lot of raw topics like the AIDS crisis which allowed for a greater awareness for what was going on during their time. When Tom Collins and Angel both found out about their AIDS diagnosis it only deepened their bond. Throughout the movie their relationship was interesting to follow because it became my favorite couple as you can see their supportive relationship. When Angel died you could see the severe impact it had on Tom and the rest of the group which was a truly heartbreaking moment. This demonstrates the impact that AIDS had on the world and why it is so important to be aware of. Overall, my favorite was definitely Rent because its musical aspect which I thought fused different genres of art in one.

   

When it came to reading the book “Scenes of a Latin Quarter”, I didn’t like it. The story used the old English language, and I typically don’t enjoy reading things like that. I also didn’t enjoy the movie “Rent” as I don’t typically enjoy musicals. Same thing goes for the Opera lecture. Although it was cool learning about the history, I am not a big fan of them.

 

A similarity I found between “Scenes of a Latin Quarter”, “Rent”, and even some of the artists we learn about, like Patti Smith in “Just Kids” is that the artists struggle economically. The artists in “Scenes from a Latin Quarter”struggle to pay their rent, the artists in “Rent” struggle to survive in New York City with their lack of money, and Patti Smith in “Just Kids” starts off homeless when she arrives in New York City. Another similarity between “Scenes of a Latin Quarter” and “Rent” is the theme of love and friendship. The characters in both the book and the movie help each other to overcome their struggles. In “Rent”, they help overcome financial struggles, isolation, and fear of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In “Scenes of a Latin Quarter”, they help overcome financial struggles and romantic conflicts. Overall, both stories had similarities and even had a common theme with what other artists dealt with outside of these two stories.

 

From the Opera lecture, I liked the operas that only relied on the piano for the instrumentals. I like classical music since I’ve been playing them throughout my life on the piano, and overall the operas sounded really nice. I was even amazed that Amanda Zory Hick had an example of herself doing an opera to show to us, she is really talented! One more thing I liked was the Oppenheimer opera she showed. I already knew the context since I watched the movie on release, which made the opera more understandable.

♥Scenes of a Latin Quarter, Rent, Opera Lecture♥

In “Scenes of a Latin Quarter”, there are obvious themes of poverty, unrequited love, and Bohemianism. Bohemianism refers to a societal movement of people who live with the arts in an unconventional way. In this story, the artists live in poverty and struggle to pay rent due to their careers, but still try to live optimistically. This is directly related to the Bohemian theme, because while art is not considered a “respectable career”, we all need art to live and relate to, which is why many artists are happy to create it.

Similarly to the artists in “Scenes of a Latin Quarter”, another group of artist friends is struggling to pay rent in NYC, and at the same time, are directly affected by the AIDS epidemic. Since Rent is a musical, it was easier for me to grasp than “Scenes of a Latin Quarter”, which I found quite dense at some points. But, both texts share the exact theme of Bohemianism and how it is used as a coping mechanism for different issues, which in this case was the AIDS epidemic, and for “Scenes of a Latin Quarter”, it was poverty and unrequited love.

Finally, I enjoyed how this connected to the Opera lecture. Not too long ago, I went to see Les Contes D’Hoffmann, which was my introduction to opera since I had never been exposed to it before. After learning about Bohemianism in opera, I have even more of an understanding of how opera came to be, and how works like Rent and “Scenes of a Latin Quarter” came to be as well. I argue that Bohemianism is still very evident in our society today, but a lot of it was popularized through these original pieces of work.

I enjoyed reading Scenes from a Latin Quarter. My favorite chapter was 6, the one that showed the infatuation of Marcel with Madam Musette. I think it accurately represents the grandeur that many artists of the time had. This is especially true with their belief that they should not accept money for their art. I liked how the book portrayed the characters as people who not only appreciated art but also lived it.

I didn’t really enjoy Rent, mostly since it was a musical. I thought it ruined the pacing and made the movie unenjoyable. I think the use of the AIDs crisis within the movie was interesting, and the characters all had similar mindsets to those in the book. I was also surprised that I have heard some of the songs that were in Rent, since I have never heard about the movie before.

The opera lecture was a different experience for me. I liked hearing about the history, but didn’t enjoy some of the examples given. I did like how there were some operas that were adapted into different mediums, like books and movies, and I enjoyed comparing them to their counterparts.

The book Scenes from a Latin Quarter and the movie Rent illustrated the Bohemian lifestyle and demonstrated similar themes of art, poverty, and love. However, I found the book to have dense language and hard to follow at times, so seeing those themes from the movie was more enjoyable. The movie’s flaw, in my opinion, is that it was a musical, so the music was a bit incessant at times, but it did a great job of capturing the Bohemian lifestyle. Also, the connections between the book and the movie were apparent because I read the book first and then watched the movie. So, when I saw similar themes, such as the characters failing to pay rent and the pride the artists took in their work, I could draw parallels between the book and the movie while watching. The movie also covered important topics for the Bohemian lifestyle in New York in the 1980s, such as Angel’s relationship with Collins and their suffering from AIDS. Back then, AIDS was thought only to be transferred between two men, and there weren’t as many treatment options available, meaning if you had contracted it, it was likely fatal. While researching the movie’s origins, I found that it was based on the opera La bohème, so going into watching the opera recordings, I was interested in drawing connections again. I thought the opera singers were talented and did a great job conveying emotion. I could see how the movie was based on an opera because of the similar ways of telling their stories through their voices. Overall, I enjoyed the book, the movie, the opera, and the connections they had between each other.

     My experience reading “Scenes from a Latin Quarter,” a book that portrays the bohemian lifestyle of artists in Paris, was enjoyable. Although the characters lived in poverty, they remained devoted to their art, finding joy in each other’s company. The main characters were part of a group called the Water Drinkers, who vowed not to devote their artistic skills for the sake of money. Their comedic interactions add happiness to the book, making it an enjoyable read. Specifically, I enjoyed reading about how, despite Schaunard’s poverty, he enjoys life by taking advantage of society and relying on his friends.

     On the other hand, the movie Rent offered a poor representation of the spirit captured in “Scenes from a Latin Quarter.” Rent brings the ideas from “Scenes from a Latin Quarter” into the modern New York setting, addressing issues such as gentrification, homelessness, and the AIDS epidemic. The modern ideas made me picture the horrible living conditions of the characters, making me focus on the suffering more than the joy that they felt from art, giving the movie a darker tone. Although I enjoyed the depiction of the bohemian lifestyle in New York, the movie sacrificed parts of the story to musical numbers, making the transitions between scenes feel forced.

     The opera presentation did an excellent job illustrating the evolution and creation of opera over time. The presentation began by stating that modern operas are more affordable, which make them appealing to wider audiences, not only the rich. The presentation continues by using  examples of different types of operas, I was able to visualize the progression of opera through time. The opera that stood out to me was the Oppenheimer Opera because it allowed me to compare how a story is told through movie and opera format.

The chapter about Mademoiselle Munette in “Scenes from a Latin Quarter” paints a picture of life in the Latin Quarter, full of both energy and struggle. Artists like Munette face a mix of joy and hardship, but she remains passionate and dedicated to her craft despite the challenges. The chapter shows how her life mirrors the broader struggles of the area, where art and community are key to survival. It celebrates the human spirit and the power of art to create meaning, even in difficult times. The movie “Rent” really spoke to me. It was about a group of friends in New York dealing with love, loss, and challenges like poverty and illness. The songs make their emotions so real, especially “Seasons of Love,” which is about measuring life through love, not time. It reminded me to live fully and cherish what’s most important. It reminded me of Professor Gianoulis’ class, because we discussed gratitude and the importance of showing appreciation in our lives. One opera piece that I liked from the zoom recording, was “Ombra mai fu”. “Ombra mai fu” feels completely different from the other two. It’s a calm, beautiful song where a character sings to a tree and appreciates its shade and stillness. It was so peaceful that it felt as if time stopped for a moment. Unlike the intense emotions in “Rent” or the “Scenes from a Latin Quarter”, this opera piece made me think about how important it is to slow down and notice the little things such as the beauty of nature that I feel that we often take for granted.