'Death by Defenestration' is a new chamber opera, with libretto and music by Tasmanian composer, Joe Bugden.
An excerpt from this work was presented through an IHOS project some years ago but the opera has now reworked and extended to a one act chamber opera, of ca 50 minutes' duration.

Death by Defenestration is the story of two brothers, each struggling with their demons, their beliefs and their principles.
Set in an upstairs bedroom of the family home on Tasmania’s north west coast, the opera investigates the issues of nationalism, patriotism, subjective moral duty and – if there is such a thing – a universal code of right and wrong.

With their mother caught in the middle, one of the brothers struggles with what he has witnessed as an Australian soldier during the Iraq war, and the guilt and shame that he carries with him as a consequence of what he and his comrades did during their time in Iraq. But the other brother has his own secrets!

The opera explores the contrasting moral codes of two brothers; one a fervent Christian and Australian war veteran of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and his brother, a pacifist-atheist, who has his own dark secrets.

After a heated argument in the upstairs bedroom, one of the brothers ends up on the street below outside the bedroom window.
Did he fall; did he throw himself out the window when challenged with certain accusations, or was he pushed?

The final scene shows the remaining brother and his mother, who is stricken with grief but needs to know what really happened to her other son.

For 'Death by Defenestration' I have sought to compose hauntingly beautiful music as a device to invest an element of abstraction into the otherwise terrible realities that each brother must face.  This work is composed for three singers (one female, two male), plus flute, clarinet, viola, cello and vibraphone (which is the ensemble I used in my previous opera, "The Call of Aurora").
I hope you will be able to support this project so that I can produce and present 'Death By Defenestration' at the Peacock Theatre at the Salamanca Arts Centre for four performances, from Wednesday 2nd - Saturday 5th March 2016.

Opera is a very expensive artform. But it's an artform that has it all; a great story to tell, music that conveys the drama and propels the narrative, and which sets up a mythical and other-worldly paradigm. It has convincing sets, costumes, make-up, colour and movement, and unlike the most expensive form of story-telling - film - opera on stage is live; you are in the room where the story takes place!! 
I am determined to present this project, as it investigates some of the terrible consequences of war; not only the damage that war leaves behind, but some of the damage that comes back home afterwards.
I am presenting this project with funds that I can raise plus ticket sales, and hopefully, not too much of my own funds, but i am determined too, to ensure that all the cast and crew receive fair and reasonable fees in consideration of their involvement in this project. My calculations show that, even with healthy ticket sales, expenses will exceed revenue by some thousands of dollars. The funds that I am able to raise through this crowdfunding campaign will be invested into the production of the show, and used to pay fees to the director, set designer, and makeup artist. 
Being able to engage the services of an experienced creative director, set-designer and make-up artist as part of our creative team will mean a much more visually enriched production and a much better experience for audiences.
I also hope to be able to pay for professional sound and video recording of the performances so that the opera can be posted to YouTube and so that new audiences all round the world can view it in high quality display, and so the recording of the work can be used to promote the possibility of a re-staging of Death by Defenestration in an interstate festival or other subsequent event.