La Bohème and the pursuit of a struggle

A sprinkling of snow falls onto the stage before the start of the production

With the passing of the Christmas season in a half-renovated, undecorated house, it would be an understatement to say life was lacking some festive spirit. I found myself yet again turning to opera to liven up what had become a very bleak midwinter. On one splendid Young RBO night, Puccini’s music graced the stage in a production of La Bohème, which follows a group of Bohemians facing the grave realities of a harsh Parisian winter.

The tale follows Rodolfo the poet, Marcello the painter, Schaunard the musician, and Colline the philosopher - young artists scraping by, sharing what little they have, and living for their art. It’s a world romanticised, where hardship is less an affliction and more of a badge of honour, a fertile ground from which creativity supposedly blooms.

But how true is that romance today?

Bohemianism has been aestheticised - curated even. On social media, we have traded perfection for stylised imperfection: the faintly blurred photograph, messy hair, spilt wine on a white tablecloth. In these cases though, it is an almost performative bohemianism, and often, it exists with a cushion of security. Many who adopt this “aesthetic” do so from a place of privilege. Unlike the characters in La Bohème, many of today’s Bohemians choose to flirt with hardship rather than be consumed by it.

Curtain call, La Bohème 14th January 2025

It remains a profound privilege to build a career from creativity. To call oneself a poet, a painter, a philosopher, is to claim an identity that relies on freedom, space, and often external support. So, if our creatives of today are already in aspirational positions, why is it that they pursue struggle?

Perhaps it is because struggle offers meaning. Struggle sharpens our joy. Struggle gives weight to our art. Struggle creates authenticity, even if that authenticity portrays discomfort or melancholy.

The real tragedy in La Bohème is not just Mimì’s death, but the haunting suggestion that love, art, and companionship may not be enough to save us from the cold.