The Threepenny Opera

“Yes, go ahead and chase after happiness, / But don’t chase it too hard, / For everyone chases after happiness / And happiness runs away.”

In a London of an indeterminate past, future, or present, survival and personal gain take precedence over moral scruples. For Mr. Peachum, the self-proclaimed “King of Beggars,” even compassion is a commodity. His business relies on equipping beggars with just the right amount of misery to elicit maximum generosity from passersby. Naturally, he pockets the lion’s share of the proceeds, for “first comes food, then comes morality.” Meanwhile, his daughter Polly is pursuing her own plans: she marries the gangster Macheath, known as Mackie Messer. He is charming, unscrupulous, and well-connected. For her father Peachum, “who knows the harshness of the world, the loss of his daughter means nothing less than utter ruin.” He does everything in his power to hand Mackie over to the police.

But even the law is not incorruptible in this world. Macheath can count on old connections: Police Chief Brown was once his “best friend.” The lines between crime and order, between right and wrong, are blurred. For “unfortunately, no one has ever heard / That something was right and then it just was.”

Economic dependencies, growing social inequality, and a system that often takes moral outrage where it costs the least—these were not just topics for song back then. Since its premiere in 1928, the “Opera for Beggars” has lost none of its relevance, sharpness, or rousing sound.