When I wrote the first incarnations of Maundy, the character was actually an obese male; I had a stereotypical Mediterranean mob boss / crime overlord in the mold of Vito Corleone (or Wilson Fisk). That idea was discarded because I think the world needs to move away from over-subjugating certain persons, and because we've already seen that done many times over. ... and because this storyline didn't have a place to fit such a gangster's history; a requisite for understanding what makes someone like that tick.
I then rewrote Maundy as a cultish elder, but again, too stereotypical; almost borderline tinfoil hat stuff. The easy fix was to just change the gender. Women and their motives (especially in the company of men) tend to be much more difficult to follow on screen/stage when all the audience is given is a few minutes with them. Men are simple to gauge; we have a small menu. Women, on the otherhand are usually (not always) in supportive roles (in the company of men), meaning that there is a lot more on their plate that they're actually dealing with when it comes to keeping waters calm. Maundy's that person. She's not a monster like Fer. Nor does she nibble on an oppressive spice like most would-be miscreants. Instead, she's had plenty of time to seduce and manipulate those she needed to to get where she wants to be. Those can be the toughest people to read because you're inadvertently part of their plans.
"I'm a competitor. Winning adds value to Life. Losing is a choice, and a poor one. You deserve what you let happen to you." - Maundy


Notes (+): +For reference, Maundy's full name is Maundy Lindros. The name comes from 'Maundy Thursday', retaining Easter nomenclature. |
She really is untouchable. Throughout most of the |
When the world's richest man, Mr. Alphabet (Canaan Dusk), comes to town seeking a second headquarters for his firm, Nile LLC, part of the requirements for its new base are that those utility companies being privately held by Lindros be returned to the public sphere. That's billions of dollars in annual income for her potentially at-risk. Couple that with the fact that Mr. Alphabet's business is also in shipping by default, and has selected Philadelphia because of its location and proximity to overseas handlers, things aren't boding well for our heiress. As a precaution, she initiates the 'Ark Project' [NOAH]. Since 1978 when she strong-willed the then-city council to turn over the utilities into her private hands, she's made a vast fortune, acquired extraordinary influence, and become a menace to the jurisdiction, especially the District Attorney's office. Now things are coming full circle for her, but, she is composed, insightful, and equally as resourceful. We'll see how this plays out.
The five-fold arc of the |
Basically, the whole story centers around her, as told from interactions with our eponym. To some degree - and on a very high-level, the entire piece purveys the rivalry between Maundy and her adversary, Ember Libitina. For the better part of forty years, these two power brokers have formulated an ongoing mutual disdain for each other; engaging in a soft war of money versus clout. It has taken an outsider and an incredible event to align their singular objectives. The tricky part about this character is that she brings no intentional antagony to the narrative; (other than her younger self's direct involvement with Pascha's reformation, ie. Joseph becoming John) she is not the sworn enemy of our protagonist/antagonist. Yet, the ebb+flow of her executive decisions pretty much entangles everyone in her web.
"The only thing a person can genuinely make is a decision." - Maundy
Good and bad are points of view, and Maundy embodies that idiom. When writing her, I found myself cheering for her at parts because she's the rare individual with a grand plan and the determination to execute on that plan. She doesn't shy from her sentiment that Pascha went and started some shit and now she's got to finish it. A lot of people dream of something and want it to happen - their hubris even leaves them with the expectation of it happening, and then there are the very few that actually make it happen. In that regard, I liken her to Dick Cheney. Maundy made bold bets in her youth that paid dividends; she trusts her instinct and is usually always right (to paraphrase Donald Trump: successful people tend to only listen to themselves). She's a boss.
"Ultimately, strength prevails. -- There is no balance of power. Equality is just a stranger's myth." - Ember
In real life, Abraham is/was known as a deadly prosecutor who regularly sought the death penalty for those convicted. Even though on paper, she was a liberal democrat (having voted for Barack Obama), her stat sheet reads that her heart is actually rather conservative.
Frank Rizzo's tenure as both Chief of Police first and then mayor, was marked as being full of strife and animosity towards Philly's African-American demographic. It may be difficult to gauge his impact today considering the national political climate in aftermath of the Obama presidency and so forth, but he remains a towering figure that may have set a precendent on how to 'handle' crime and criminals in large American cities. |
I actually couldn't tell this story without Ember. One, the incumbent mayor, Curran, needs a worthy challenger in the runoff election that's taking place, and two, in order to keep things from spiraling out-of-control, Maundy's overbearing authority has to be challenged by an adversary from the political sphere. It just does. This situation (the distribution of Mr. Alphabet's intra-city investment) lends itself perfectly to a winner-takes-all 'Battle for Philadelphia' that nobody can actually win. The ever-so-sharp Ember shows us that people's migrant behavior is recycled from patterns of economic health [ie. roughly every two (2) decades or every other generation, the wealthier class relocates back into the city for jobs+employment before saving their money and moving to the suburbs]. This is an important note and plot point, as we see that residential stagnation is a detriment and impossibility where there exists youth.
"I've lived a long, normal life. Like you, I used to be overwhelmed with sadness when people died. Stay in law enforcement long enough, and we all come to the same satisfying conclusion: criminals make it easy to see that not everyone wants or deserves to live." - Ember Libitina

Easter is a long (~168 hours), challenging [mostly because in addition to this being largely ad-libbed (being mute, Maundy has no speaking parts) from storyboards (that rationale is because the telepresence factor dictates mimicry of "real life", where goals may be planned but usually unscripted), the elements of timing+spacing are critical in polyplexity cinematography ..cf. openworld vcs, making it akin to a live show] five-chord opera ludo, and the character [lead] of Maundy (coloratura) is featured throughout, so in order to carry the piece the actress would need to have plenty of stamina+ability. Annie Starke is one of the very few thespians I could think of that encompasses said range. She's versatile and adept. Having both lived with and worked alongside her accomplished mother, her distinction is welcomed, and as we attempt to record libretto-to-opera with fidelity, relying on her breadth of craftwork (film/television, stage/musical theatre, etc.) can only be a plus when it comes to helping everyone else on set deliver their best performance(s). It's a win-win.
Shout-out: Thanks also goes to the non-profit, #BringChangetoMind, which is aimed at supporting mental health and reducing the stigma of mental illness. -- Mental health is a big focal point in this
opera
.