- The lights go off, the accompanist steals a kiss. Or does he? Bel Canto jumps straight into the action. Except we're not quite sure what action.
- First we find out that the lights are down, but we don't know why. Stage effects? Power failure? How mysterious.
- Then we find out that everyone in the room thinks the accompanist kissed the singer. But nobody saw it, because, well, the lights were down.
- Maybe, the narrator hints, everybody wanted to kiss the singer because her voice was so astonishing, and so they imagined it all. Cute.
- So we're left wondering: what happened? Why are the lights off?
- Turns out, this was one heck of a performance. Think Benedict Cumberbatch fans are a crazy batch? (Heh.) This singer has enchanted everybody there, even the people who thought they hated opera.
- Backstory time: the host country could use a lot more money in its economy, and they think the secret is to convince Japanese electronics firm CEO Katsumi Hosokawa to build a factory here. What has that got to do with opera? Fair question.
- Turns out, Mr. Hosokawa is a craaaaaazy mad opera fan. His favorite singer is Roxane Coss, so the country has hired her to perform at a birthday party for him.
- Mr. Hosokawa has no interest in building a factory, and he's been pretty upfront about that. But he really can't resist the chance to hear Roxane Coss sing for him, so he comes anyway (it would be like telling a thirteen-year-old they could have Taylor Swift come to their birthday party).
- We also learn that Mr. Hosokawa's company, Nansei, is big news. So big that when he agreed to attend the party a bunch of international businesspeople, diplomats, and government officials did too.
- Flashback even further: Mr. Hosokawa actually fell in love with opera on another birthday. His eleventh, to be precise. His father took him to see Verdi's opera Rigoletto (more on that in the "Allusions" section) and he's been obsessed with opera ever since.
- By obsessed, we mean one of his favorite memories is the time he ate a spoiled oyster and had to stay home from work. Why? Because he got to listen to a Handel opera during sick leave. That kind of obsessed.
- We also learn that Mr. Hosokawa's daughter gave him a Roxane Coss recording for another birthday five years ago, and Roxane became his favorite opera singer.
- He's also gone to 18 performances by Roxane, often finding a reason to fly to wherever she's performing. Not to mention, he watched one opera she was in three nights in a row.
- Since that's the point where most people would get creeped out, don't. Mr. Hosokawa is an extremely polite fan. He hasn't tried for an autograph; in fact, he hasn't even considered trying to meet Roxane. It's all about the ears.
- Opera flashbacks over. By the way, the narrator of Bel Canto is big on jumping around in time, so settle in for a lot of flashbacks and backstory.
- Meanwhile, the French ambassador, Simon Thibault, is getting worried. He knows before anyone else that the lights going out means something bad is happening. The narrator doesn't tell us what just yet. Just what Simon says.
- Roxane Coss offers to sing in the dark if someone will get a candle. Instead, the lights go back on.
- Some very recent backstory, which becomes important when everything goes bad at the party (no, no spoiler alert: the narrator tells us it will): we find out that the president of the country (President Masuda) skipped the party to watch his favorite soap opera. Apparently, he does this kind of thing regularly if soap operas are concerned.
- Now things start looking like their own sort of soap opera. Men rush into the room. Threats are made. We realize that the party is in a hostile takeover, and the newcomers are terrorists. Things don't look so great.
- What next? Mr. Hosokawa's translator says something to him and we get a long story about how Mr. Hosokawa met his translator, Gen, in Greece. Did we mention the flashback thing? Bel Canto likes them a lot.
- The terrorists demand President Masuda, who is not there (the joys of the soap opera). The vice president timidly steps forward to tell them the president isn't there. They hit him with a gun but don't shoot him.
- The terrorists make everyone lie down on the floor. They search the guests, but don't find much that interests them.
- Roxane's accompanist is slowly moving his own body on top of hers to protect her from any sudden moves. And a minute ago people were freaking about a smooch in the dark. It may not be part of your standard accompanist job contract, but he must really care about her.
- Mr. Hosokawa is briefly mistaken for the president of the country, whose parents are of Japanese origin.
- We find out that the terrorists were moved by Roxane Coss's singing. One of them lightly holds her hand for a bit. Um, okay.
- Vice President Ruben Iglesias, still bleeding from where the terrorists hit him, explains when asked that the president is watching a soap opera and that's why he didn't come. He knows that admitting this in front of all these people will end his own career in politics—and we can see how it might be just a teeny bit embarrassing for the president if this tidbit gets out—but hey, the guy has blood coming out of him.
- The terrorist leader, General Benjamin, who was planning to kill the vice president, decides not to. The story about the president watching soap operas is so silly he believes it.
- The president's soap opera habit ruins the terrorists' original plan, which was to kidnap the president, leave instantly, and take him into the jungle. Who knew? Soap operas can be good for you. Or at least for the president.
- The chapter ends with sirens and lights outside. Not clear whether our people will be rescued anytime soon.