Opera Ghost's memorandum-book

Origins and Formal Demands

The memorandum-book was the standard contract governing the management of the National Academy of Music, beginning with the declaration that "the management of the Opera shall give to the performance of the National Academy of Music the splendor that becomes the first lyric stage in France" and ending with Clause 98, which stipulated that the privilege could be withdrawn if the manager infringed the conditions. To this official document, the ghost appended his own requirements in red ink, in a queer, labored handwriting that resembled the writing of a child who had never learned to join its letters. The first addition was a fifth clause: "5. Or if the manager, in any month, delay for more than a fortnight the payment of the allowance which he shall make to the Opera ghost, an allowance of twenty thousand francs a month, say two hundred and forty thousand francs a year." The second addition specified that "Box Five on the grand tier shall be placed at the disposal of the Opera ghost for every performance." These additions were presented to the incoming managers, Firmin Richard and Armand Moncharmin, by their predecessors, M. Debienne and M. Poligny, who had been forced to operate under these terms and who used the document to explain their retirement.

The Managers' Confrontation with the Terms

When M. Poligny produced the copy of the memorandum-book with the ghost's additions, the new managers initially treated the matter as an elaborate joke. Firmin Richard, with his reputation for practical joking, asked with the greatest coolness whether the ghost wanted anything else, and the two partners laughed at the idea of working for a ghost. M. Poligny, without moving a muscle of his face, insisted on the seriousness of the demands, pointing out that the loss over Box Five alone had been considerable, as they had not sold it once and had been forced to return the subscription. The ex-managers declared, "We really can't work to keep ghosts! We prefer to go away!" When Richard suggested having the ghost arrested, Debienne and Poligny replied that they had never seen him, and when Richard proposed selling the box, they challenged him to try. The new managers left the office having "never laughed so much in their lives," but the memorandum-book's terms would soon prove to be more than a jest.

The Ghost's Enforcement of the Contract

The memorandum-book's demands were not merely theoretical. The ghost enforced his terms through a series of letters and actions. After the managers sold Box Five, they received an inspector's report of disturbances in the box, where occupants heard a voice saying that the box was taken. The ghost's letter to the managers, delivered in red ink, reiterated his demands: "You must give me back my private box; and I wish it to be at my free disposal from henceforward," along with the requirement that Christine Daae sing the part of Margarita and that Mme. Giry be reinstated as his box-keeper. The letter concluded with a threat: "If you refuse, you will give FAUST to-night in a house with a curse upon it." The ghost's enforcement culminated in the fall of the chandelier, which crashed into the stalls, killing the concierge who had replaced Mme. Giry, an event that demonstrated the ghost's willingness to back his contractual demands with catastrophic violence.

The Monthly Allowance and the Magic Envelope

The memorandum-book's financial clause led to the famous magic envelope affair. The ghost sent a note instructing the managers to place twenty thousand francs in an envelope, seal it with their own seal, and hand it to Mme. Giry. The managers complied, hoping to catch the blackmailer, but when they opened the envelope, they found the real notes replaced by twenty notes from the "Bank of St. Farce." The ghost had used Mme. Giry as an unwitting intermediary, substituting a prepared envelope and slipping the real one into Richard's pocket. The second month, the managers attempted to foil the theft by having Moncharmin watch Richard's coat-tail pocket, but the money vanished nonetheless, leaving only the safety-pin in place. The memorandum-book's terms thus created a cycle of theft and humiliation that drove the managers to the brink of madness, until the ghost, having relinquished his claim on Christine Daae, returned the forty thousand francs with a note reading "WITH O. G.'S COMPLIMENTS."

Significance and Legacy

The memorandum-book represents the ghost's attempt to legitimize his existence through a formal contract, a document that both acknowledged his power and exposed his vulnerability. It was the instrument by which Erik, a man without a face or a place in society, sought to carve out a domain where he could exercise control. The document's red-ink additions, written in a childish hand, contrast sharply with the sophisticated machinery of the Opera, suggesting a being who was both a master of illusion and a creature of desperate need. The memorandum-book's terms were ultimately abandoned when Erik, moved by Christine's tears and his own renunciation, returned the money and relinquished his claims, signaling the end of his reign over the Opera. The document thus stands as a testament to the ghost's tragic ambition: to be "some one, like everybody else," even if that meant reducing his extraordinary genius to a set of contractual demands.