The Opera! Arias for an Eclipse is the extraordinary, unique artistic vision of Davide Livermore and Paolo Gep Cucco.
Modern Times
by Alexa DalbyThe Opera! Arias for an Eclipse
[rating=4]
CAUTION: Here be spoilers
This is an opera film with an up-to-date setting and musical twist for people who think they don’t like traditional opera.
World-famous director/actor/singer Davide Livermore, now artistic director at the Genoa Opera House, and creative director Paolo Gep Cucco have made an extraordinary film together. The Opera! Arie per un’eclissi is a contemporary version of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Euridice, using as a framework the opera composed in 1762 by Gluck.
This version starts with Eurydice (soprano Mariam Battistelli) being shot on her wedding day, and continues with a jukebox opera of greatest hits chosen to tell their love story, sung by world-class opera singers, moving eclectically from Puccini to Händel, from Verdi to Gluck, from Vivaldi to even The Power of Love by Frankie Goes to Hollywood. Traumatised and lovestruck Orpheus (tenor Valentino Buzza) follows Eurydice to the underworld intending to bring her back with him – here, it’s called the Hotel Hades. Though the libretto as sung is in Italian, the spoken dialogue is surprisingly in English, with varying degrees of success, and Fanny Ardant speaks in French. But why is everywhere ankle-deep in water? And why is the stagey set skew-whiff?
As well as these two principals, there’s a stellar cast which includes Vincent Cassel as the ferryman Charon, here driving a taxi instead of a boat, and Fanny Ardant (Proserpina), Caterina Murino, Erwin Schrott, Rossy De Palma, Angela Finocchiaro, Linda Gennari, Charlotte Gentile and Sergio Bernal, plus a payload of models in designer-wear when Charon drives them in a minibus.
A feature of the film is the (smart but sometimes outrageous) costumes designed by Dolce & Gabbana. A chess game is a nod to Bergman. The film is either a masterpiece or ludicrous. Or both. Or somewhere in between. You decide. All those markets can’t be wrong. Can they? If you were fully involved in the film’s artistic world, there’s a surprise towards the end, which I won’t reveal.
The Opera! Arias for an Eclipse had its world premiere at the Rome Film Festival on 25 October 2024. It has sold well worldwide. International sales are by Pulsar and representation by The PR Factory.
