Christian’s operatic joke

After reading the task brief, Christian says that the prospect of performing in front of a full audience for nearly a minute is a nightmare. Olli replies by rhetorically asking how long Christian has been employed as an actor at the National Theatre.

In the studio, Christian says that he has since gotten over his initial reaction to the task, and intends to deliver something “powerful” that will move people: he will sing Puccini’s Nessun Dorma.

As the song’s lengthy instrumental introduction plays, Christian moves from his chair to another chair set up centre-stage, and lights a candle to create ambiance for his performance. He then picks up a single long-stemmed rose and tosses it at Atle’s feet as he prepares to start singing.

As soft light hits Christian, he finally starts to sing. However, after just two words, Olli blows the whistle, indicating that Christian’s time is already up. Christian unconvincingly feigns surprise that his time limit was 45 seconds, and not 45 minutes, and he returns to his seat.

7.7% of the audience vote goes to Christian, and so he earns fourth place.

(Written by Jenny R and proofread by Karl Craven)

(Illustrations collected by Jenny R and adjusted by David Fuller)