What are your thoughts on octet?
i love Octet to death. i think it’s a fascinating exploration of human behavior and pysche as they are influenced by our relationships with the internet/digital age technology. that it explores a lot of different aspects of the internet and peoples’ different relationships with it -- both negative and positive -- with nuance and care, never outright condemnation. that it feels personal and human, not preachy or generalizing (which i think definitely stems from Dave’s recognition and analysis of his own relationships with the internet).
i love Octet’s nuance. it can often be hard to find media depicting or especially commenting on relationships with the internet, especially negative or unhealthy ones, that doesn’t coming off as patronizing, uninformed, obnoxious, clunky, “hurr bdurr technology bad fire scary thomas edison was a witch,” etc.; but Octet gets the nuance of the internet as neither wholly good nor wholly bad, and understands the depth of its multifaceted and vast nature. you can’t make sweeping generalizations about it being either good or bad.
i love that Octet has a clear three-part structure that explores its topic from different angles in a way that flows naturally: with part one exploring negative experiences directly through/about use of the internet/addictions more on the surface level (Refresh, Candy, Glow), part two exploring deeper personal addictions that are exacerbated/fueled (but not directly caused by) the internet (Solo, Actually, Little God), and part three focuses on the healing and positive aspects of the internet and acknowledges outright that it’s not all bad (Beautiful). i like that even though it’s solidly a concept musical without having a central plot to speak of, the story follows a very satisfying and complete arc from darkness to danger to light -- a journey literally mirrored in the group numbers which serve as transitions between parts (the Forest, Monster, the Field). i love that the journey from the forest to the field is a metaphor for the whole show and is referenced time and time again throughout the work.
i love that Octet’s score is so varied in its style and influences. that it takes inspiration from the form and style traditional a cappella music like church music (”a cappella” means “in a chapel!”), not just the pop-y style of college groups and mainstream/contemporary broadway and Pitch Perfect. i love that it also takes inspiration from lots of styles of music, and it’s still always recognizably Dave Malloy. i love that form and function complement each other. i love that the Forest sounds like a hymn. i love that Candy is quick and bouncy and catchy with an irregular meter to mimic the affect of mobile games. i love that Fugue State is a seemingly chaotic mess, the very opposite of a musical fugue, but instead capturing the erratic mood of obsession and addiction. i love that Solo is the only number that’s a duet, and it’s a duet about two people singing about different perspectives on a shared issue: being alone. i love that Little God isn’t a song like the others because Marvin’s issue lies in his skepticism and lack of emotional wonder, an almost fundamental quality of music (especially in a musical). i love that Beautiful is entirely unaccompanied, expressing Velma’s vulnerability but also emphasizing that her perspective is different, her experience is positive, and the exposed nature of her song draws attention to that in contrast with the business of every other number. i love that the whole show ends with the Field and ends on a canon, almost classical in style, using repetition to drive home its final message of hope.
i love that Octet has quirks and jokes and references everywhere. the references to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy in Little God. the blunt and amusing strangeness of the Tower Tea Ceremony. the extended metaphors in Monster. the binary code, the powers of two, the rantings in Fugue State. Karly belting out “erectile dysfunction” in Solo. h-t-t-p-s-colon-double-slash-y-o-u-t-u-dot-b-e-slash-d-capitalQ-w-4-w-9-captialW-g-captialX-c-capitalQ.
i love that Octet has so many great quotes. funny ones, and serious ones, and ones that are a bit of both. I was okay once, I can be okay again, I have not gone crazy just yet. This all happened so fast...I don’t think we’re wired to handle this. What if I’m not big enough to take in so much pain? I feel my body stretched between two cliffs; one side is fantasy, the other, reality. I feel very far away from myself right now. And I am beautiful, beautiful, beautiful too. Beyond right and wrong, there is a field; I will meet you there.
i love that Octet doesn’t pretend to solve tough problems, or even to offer potential solutions. it knows you can’t fix internet addiction in a 90 minute musical. rather, it exists to acknowledge what is both good and bad about an important shared thing/experience as a way of stressing the benefit of offline relationships, creating solidarity, sharing empathy, building bridges, fostering hope. it’s a piece about humanity.
does that answer your question?
