Theater company performs Phantom of the Opera in Final Fantasy XIV

In Final Fantasy XIV, player Yuki Momochi and her friends organize actual plays that they perform in front of other players. We at MeinMMO spoke to the boss and asked her about her hobby.

This theater is about: Role-playing has been one of the core elements of MMORPGs since the earliest times. After all, they have emerged from the classic pen & paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons or The Dark Eye.

While role-playing is often neglected in many modern MMORPGs, there are still large RP communities that experience adventures together or even get cool projects off the ground.

This includes the theater troupe, which is directed by the player Yuki Momochi. To celebrate the premiere of her latest play “The Phantom of the Opera”, we at MeinMMO conducted an interview with her.

“I wanted to make ‘The Culling of Stratholme’ as a play!” – How it all began

MeinMMO: Hi, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers?

Yuki: Hello, my online name is Yuki Momochi. I’m a gamer, cosplayer and actually since my teenage years I’ve been a role player in different universes, then on forums, now in MMORPGs. I love creative hobbies and especially when I can connect everything.

MeinMMO: What was your introduction to MMORPGs?

Yuki: My first MMO was Shaiya, a Korean F2P MMORPG. I discovered it at a friend’s house when I was 13 and was so excited that I was able to interact with other players all at once.

After that came Aion, where I totally lost myself for a short time. As a student I would sometimes just stay up all night playing and then enter World of Warcraft with Mists of Pandaria. For about 2 years now I’ve only been playing Final Fantasy 14 in the MMO category.

MeinMMO: How did you specifically get into organizing theater performances?

Yuki: It started with my love of role-playing, where you make up a story for your character, or multiple ones, like in Dungeons & Dragons, and play it out in an open world.

There was a mod in World of Warcraft called Musician that allowed midi files, which are simplified music files, to be played in different instruments or even as a band. I had made my character Intra, a human worgen, a Gilneas opera singer!

Due to the fact that this city, Gilneas, is no longer habitable in the game’s history, it has made its money from performing. However, I wanted to do more than just play a little music. I wanted to do The Culling of Stratholme as a play!

Many liked this idea, we practiced for a few weeks and then performed it at a public event for 3 days at the same time. It just felt really good.

MeinMMO: What were the biggest problems with the performances back then?

Yuki: The biggest problem is always finding reliable people. I usually swap roles several times until I find the final actor.

There are various reasons for this. Often these people have noticed that it is not for them or that something is up in real life. That is of course always respected and “The Show Must Go On”. So far it has always worked.

The Phantom of the Opera and how it was prepared

MeinMMO: Please tell our readers about the current project of you and your RP friends in FFXIV? What piece is it and why did you choose it?

Yuki: I chose Phantom of the Opera and got others excited about it because it’s my absolute favorite musical. As the director, I usually make the decisions, but mostly it’s a well-known play or story. In the RP, the Phantom of the Opera is a story by Ishgard.

MeinMMO: How do you go about writing the screenplay?

Yuki: I usually look for the original script or film on the Internet and then start changing, cutting, adapting the whole thing. For example, if an actor playing a female character is now the phantom, any “he” changes to “she” or “male” to “female”. Also city names like “Rome” will be changed to Final Fantasy friendly names like “Allag”.

The length of preparation is different each time. For Hercules (Disney inspired) we needed 3 months in total, one rehearsal every week. For Phantom, it’s about the same. You also have to say that not everyone shows up for every rehearsal, so you have to be a bit flexible.

MeinMMO: What do you pay particular attention to during rehearsals?

Yuki: During rehearsals there are a few basic rules that I always “teach” first. That would be giving each actor time, with text and emotes. Then that the actors always face the audience, except for specific exceptions. However, the most important thing is that the players enjoy the game, because without this factor, nothing works.

We meet once a week, unless I only train with a certain group, dancers for example, then it can be twice.

The length of preparation is different each time. For Hercules (Disney) it took us 3 months in total, one rehearsal every week. For Phantom, it’s about the same. You also have to say that not everyone shows up for every rehearsal, so you have to be a bit flexible.

MeinMMO: Does everyone in your team have a special role or do you share all tasks?

Yuki: We have many roles. First the actors, who only focus on that, then the musicians, the “cleaners” who change the stage design depending on the scene and me, the director, who tells everyone where to go! No, it’s not quite like that, I give the instructions and the actors are free to embellish their role with emotes.

We also provided the stage, various scenes and furniture that you can set up completely yourself in Final Fantasy. It sounds very arrogant but it’s not at all, I have the vision, however the actors are the ones who really present the whole thing and make it terrific!

I take care of all the background so we can really perform in a good quality and have fun.

“So put on a suit or dress, leave the guns outside”

MeinMMO: Can I join you? What are the requirements for your actors?

Yuki: Absolutely anyone can join us who has a bit of time and the will to do a cool creative project with others. However, we speak in English and play the roleplay rehearsals ourselves. But the RP community from the data center Chaos is very, very open to new players and they are happy to take you by the hand.

MeinMMO: Where can you watch the piece live?

Yuki: You are welcome to log into the RPC Discord server to play RP in FF14 or follow my Twitter channel where I will also post it. We will also record the whole thing, so no time pressure!

I just ask every player to respect the RP community and when you watch the performance give them the space. The role-playing game, oh, how do you say that in German… to leave it “immersive”. So put on a suit or dress, leave your guns out and pretend it’s a real opera for a moment!

MeinMMO: What would you like to see from the developers for role-playing players in the future? Which features would be particularly important to you?

Yuki: As always more emotes, in-game speech bubbles would be so awesome! And maybe an improved bard music function.

MeinMMO: Do you have any final words?

Yuki: I’m just so overwhelmed by the interest in the project and slowly my stomach is tingling, the excitement is building. I can’t wait to perform the piece, record it and then continue with a little break too! I hope you were able to get a little insight into how you can still play an MMORPG and maybe see you in Eorzea.

We would like to thank Yuki for the interview and wish her and her troupe every success in their performances.

Do you participate in roleplaying in MMORPGs yourself? Have you ever watched or even participated in a play in an MMORPG? Tell us in the comments.

Incidentally, soon the role-players will get a new area in which they can let off steam. The island paradise of the Island Sanctuary:

In the MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV everyone wants a house – now they get an island like in Animal Crossing