Musical or Opera

I think I could do with developing a lot culturally, one of those things is going to the theatre more often (Which I love, but very rarely do).

My girlfriend Naomi is well versed in theatre and music (Being both her passions and what she studied at Uni) so I plan to see everything she takes part in, and also go see whatever she like that's on in the theatres round the county.

Something I never knew (Or rather considered) was what the difference is between a Musical and an Opera, now I know what some of you are thinking... it's obvious Opera is sung in foreign language by a fat lady, Musicals are sung by sprightly young adults leaping about on stage like they have springs in their shoes. Well stereotypically yes that's right... about as right as London being full of Black Cabs, Red Telephone boxes and the whistling Bobby on the beat. Here's the distinction:

Opera: Little or no dialogue is not sung, the story is conveyed through recitative, where characters sing to one another to tell the story. Removing all spoken dialogue (the libretto)
would not damage the storyline. There can be large sections of instrumental music.

Musical: Songs, music and dance tie scenes together, but do not form the basis of dialogue (which is usually extrapolated through the libretto), only reinforce it. Removal of the songs would only reduce the impact/emphasis on the storyline and reduce the emotional attachment of the audience to the, often thinly developed, characters.

So by all rights Sweeny Todd is an Opera, however it's touted as a Musical (Although even that's really not mentioned much), but it's a little unfashionable to call it an Opera, as it conjures up the stereotypical view of fat ladies singing Arias. Which is a real shame as I think it is a beautiful format that is very undersold in today's market.