Eastern Kentucky University
Merry + Casey 4 Ever: An Exploration of the Unilateral Relationship Featured in William Schuman’s Opera, The Mighty Casey
Institution
Eastern Kentucky University
Faculty Advisor/ Mentor
Joyce Hall Wolf
Abstract
William Schuman’s opera, The Mighty Casey, was inspired by the popular children’s poem, Casey at the Bat. In this poem, the god-like Casey strikes out in the third inning, causing his team to lose the state championship. Inspired by his love of baseball, Schuman expanded this poem into a three scene opera, with a plethora of new characters, events, and sub-plots. In this research we explored one of the primary sub-plots; the blossoming relationship between Merry – a hometown girl, who drastically changes her personality for the sake of her love – and Casey – the seraphic star of the show, who is mute throughout the performance. What can we learn about their relationship if Casey never speaks? Utilizing numerous psychological scales, such as the Psychovector Love Scale, we traced the evolution of their relationship through Merry’s arias, third party accounts, and unspoken stage direction. Results show how Merry naively follows Casey through his success, selfishly expects him to remain with her instead of following his dreams, and finally stands in support of him when nobody else will. It shows how Casey abuses Merry and takes advantage of her, disregards her feelings, then gains a mature perspective after losing the big game. Furthermore, this project allows exploration of our own humanity as reflected through the operatic form.
Merry + Casey 4 Ever: An Exploration of the Unilateral Relationship Featured in William Schuman’s Opera, The Mighty Casey
William Schuman’s opera, The Mighty Casey, was inspired by the popular children’s poem, Casey at the Bat. In this poem, the god-like Casey strikes out in the third inning, causing his team to lose the state championship. Inspired by his love of baseball, Schuman expanded this poem into a three scene opera, with a plethora of new characters, events, and sub-plots. In this research we explored one of the primary sub-plots; the blossoming relationship between Merry – a hometown girl, who drastically changes her personality for the sake of her love – and Casey – the seraphic star of the show, who is mute throughout the performance. What can we learn about their relationship if Casey never speaks? Utilizing numerous psychological scales, such as the Psychovector Love Scale, we traced the evolution of their relationship through Merry’s arias, third party accounts, and unspoken stage direction. Results show how Merry naively follows Casey through his success, selfishly expects him to remain with her instead of following his dreams, and finally stands in support of him when nobody else will. It shows how Casey abuses Merry and takes advantage of her, disregards her feelings, then gains a mature perspective after losing the big game. Furthermore, this project allows exploration of our own humanity as reflected through the operatic form.