All who have any inkling of Quelmarian musical theatre is very aware of The Banshee of the Orchestra. It is the longest running show in Quelmar's theatrical history, depicting an actress eager to prove her voice to the world. As she arrives at the famous Forum Theatre, however, she runs afoul of the Banshee who haunts it. Jealous of the actress' voice, the Banshee does everything in her power to ruin shows and get the actress banished from the stage. By the end, the exhausted actress must act as bait for an exorcism to see this horrid specter banished once and for all.
Behind the Scenes Drama
The Author's Truth
The script of The Banshee of the Orchestra was written by Brandy Lane Weaving, who claims to have actually gone through the experiences depicted in the show. She says she was haunted by the Banshee long ago when she first arrived in Narrowcourt. While that experience deeply scarred her, she found it therapeutic to put her trauma down on paper, and even more so to see it performed, with the ability to watch it from behind theatre's fourth wall. While some pan this as merely a money grab on the part of the author, many critics applaud Weaving's bravery in putting her soul out upon the stage. More so that said soul tells a remarkable story that both fans and detractors talk about and clamor for decades.
The Banshee's Truth
Recently, a new theory on the show has come to light, courtesy of the famed actor Andre Addams-D'squith. Addams-D'ysquith is famed for both his performances and his ability to summon and speak to the dead who haunt every theatre despite magic's disappearance after the Fracturing of the Weave. He claims that in his time at the NeDNDerlander Theatre (more commonly referred to still as The Forum Theatre), he has developed a strong relationship with Sibella, the resident ghost. Over their time together, she has helped him grow as an artist, and even helped keep him safe from many a possible accident that can happen in a theatre. In return, he has listened to her stories in order to keep her memory alive, and among those tales is what Addams-D'ysquith claims is the true story of The Banshee of the Orchestra.
"Back when the Forum was first founded, Sibella was the theatre company's leading lady," Addams-D'ysquith explains. "I can only assume her voice then was like it is now, in which case it was akin to hearing angels sing. She was well regarded and loved by all, until rotten spot on the stage caused her to plunge to the basement of the theatre and lose her life. Since then she has been keeping productions as safe as she can and nurturing young talent at the Forum Theatre.
"Her afterlife was filled with beautiful music," he continues, "until Weaving came to the theatre. Determined to be a leading ingénue despite having a voice akin to a toad being ground in a blender (her words, not mine), Weaving drove Sibella into fits of sadness and anger as she butchered score after score with her music. Sibella tried to offer advice, and despite her aversion to the woman, she even tried to keep her safe while in the theatre. But Weaving was extremely necrophobic, and did everything she could to have Sibella banished from the theatre. Eventually the board of directors agreed, and an exorcist was brought in, but thankfully he was an incompetent fool (again, her words), and she was a marvelous actress (my words). She pretended to be gone and suffered in silence till Weaving eventually left the company. Sibella hadn't even thought of the woman until she wrote her show, and by then no one thought she was there or could understand her words until me, so until now she has continued to suffer in silence. But I'm not about to let that go on."
While we may never be truly able to confirm this story, it has caused new debates about the show and its themes to spark up. Perhaps Addams-D'ysquith just wanted to fan flames of fanaticism for theatre and this show in particular, or perhaps he truly cares for the dead of the theatres. We may never truly know.
