Students write, perform quirky operatic comedy about the Mario Brothers

GOSHEN, Ind. – Combining his musical talents with his love for video games, Goshen College senior Jesse Landis-Eigsti recently wrote and produced the original operetta "I Fratelli Mario" (The Brothers Mario), a 25-minute epic comic operetta based on the video game characters from "Super Mario Brothers."

Landis-Eigsti liked the idea of putting the story of a video game, which is typically seen as a low-art form, into an opera, which is seen as high-art. "I knew I wanted to do something humorous that wouldn't take itself too seriously," he said.

A music composition major from Lakewood, Colo., Landis-Eigsti said the plot follows the basic story line of the Super Mario Brothers video game – a game he first played in elementary school when his family got a Nintendo. In the game, the Mario brothers are on a quest to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser, the main antagonist who is trying to take over the Mushroom Kingdom. But in Landis-Eigsti's opera, there were some twists to the basic plot: a sibling rivalry between Mario and Luigi, the addition of Link from "The Legend of Zelda" and the princess who wants to be independent and save herself.

The music was almost all original and designed to remind the audience of the music from the games. "Sometimes I would sneak in a chord progression or melody line, but mostly it's original music," Landis-Eigsti said. "I don't want to elevate video games too high ... but the songs from those video games are 20 years old and people instantly recognize them ... I think that's no small feat."

The idea for the operetta came last summer, when he was thinking of what to do for his senior recital, and his mom suggested that he write an opera based on the Mario Brothers. However, the operetta he wrote ended up being too long for that purpose. So, instead, it was performed independently on campus days before his college graduation in late April in two free performances that both drew large crowds.

At the moment, Landis-Eigsti does not have any plans for the opera. "I would love to do something in connection with Nintendo," he said. "I think that would be a great amount of fun, but I don't really see that happening." He also pointed out that the characters he used are probably under copyright – which is why the performance was free – so he would need to talk to a lawyer before he could consider publishing the work.

Student volunteer performers helped Landis-Eigsti put on the show. They included: Andy Brubaker, a junior (as Mario); Martin Brubaker, a sophomore (as Luigi); Greg Yoder, a senior (as Browser); Emily Swora, a senior (as Princess Peach); and Andrew Landis, a senior (as Link). A small orchestra of students also accompanied the show.

"The best part was the cast and crew. I was working with all student volunteers who were doing it for fun," Landis-Eigsti said. "I think they blew the audience away with the strength of their voices."

The operetta was performed to a receptive audience, which gave it standing ovations both nights. "They laughed at all the parts I thought were funny and even ones I didn't think were funny," he said.

But even for people who did not grow up during the Mario era, the show was enjoyable. "Some older people came up to me after the show and said 'I didn't get all the references but I still had a good time,'" Landis-Eigsti said.

– By Tyler Falk

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college's Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron's Best Buys in Education, "Colleges of Distinction," "Making a Difference College Guide" and U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges" edition, which named Goshen a "least debt college." Visit www.goshen.edu.