L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2015 www.italoamericano.org L'Italo-Americano 2 also include an international school of arts. While waiting for the grand opening, I had the honor to interview the Maestro, who has been awarded the title of Grand'Ufficiale, Order of Merit of the Italian Republic as w e l l a s o f C a v a l i e r e Commendatore, Order of the British Empire. W h a t m e m o r i e s d o y o u h a v e o f y o u r d e b u t a s a n Opera director? I've only wonderful memo- ries. Sometimes I had to deal with whimsical and ambitious singers but in the end of the day, this job has given me great joy. It's the game that we play in the show business: solving prob- lems, witnessing to dramas and comedies. Rossini, Donizetti, Verdi, and Wagner incorporated i n t h e i r m u s i c a l l p o s s i b l e human emotions. This is exactly why I've always had a fascina- tion with the Opera. Since a very young age, I've had the opportu- nity to go to theater, as my uncle was also an excellent baritone and my whole family was pas- sionate about opera. How much does your stag- i n g c o m b i n e r e l i g i o u s a n d moral components? Lyric operas usually end up with tragedies, as characters lose their mind or their life, and it is necessary to show their lingering regret. Then there was also an atheist time that later run out, leaving space to glorious stories based on the moral preaching: "Sinners will pay for their sins." Callas Forever is a movie that you directed in 2002, ded- icated to the artist who radi- c a l l y c h a n g e d t h e w o r l d o f Opera. But what's left today of Maria Callas' legend? Maria's voice was pure love, a clear memory lost in the dis- tance and yet always with us. Her legacy to the world is made of unmatchable performances, and still today artists and direc- tors look at her with sentiment and regret. When I was just a young man, I was so in love with her that I would do any- thing she asked. She performed in the greatest masterpieces, in which music was an essential part of life and even life itself. Do you have a special rela- t i o n s h i p w i t h a n y o t h e r artists? Only smart women are in my heart. Dreaming of making love with all of them was legitimate and inevitable: one night Maria Callas was on stage, the follow- ing night it was Maria Caniglia. The female voice is enchanting with its magic language: it's a very important gift from God. Being a public figure, a singer can lack intelligence or culture but when they sing in such an e x t r a o r d i n a r y f a s h i o n , t h e y belong to some place out of this world. Placido Domingo will con- d u c t P a g l i a c c i b y R u g g e r o Leoncavallo, based on your p r e v i o u s r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f 1996, at the L.A. Opera from S e p t e m b e r 1 2 t h r o u g h October 3, 2015. Any thoughts on this? I've beautiful memories of Placido Domingo, and I'd like to replicate them all every time. In particular, Pagliacci featured an excellent Domingo, whose char- acter Canio has the power to decide for other people's life or death, and Leoncavallo's bril- l i a n t m u s i c g a v e e v e n m o r e strength to his performance. The whole music and sound structure of Pagliacci is a masterpiece. I am sure that it has been com- pletely preserved this time as well. A m e r i c a n f i l m m a k e r W o o d y A l l e n w i l l d i r e c t G i a c o m o P u c c i n i ' s o p e r a Gianni Schicchi, to be staged alongside Pagliacci in L.A. W h a t d o y o u t h i n k o f t h i s choice? I ' v e n e v e r s e e n W o o d y Allen's shows and I'd like to offer a critique that is both posi- tive and negative at the same time. In general, I'm interested in his way of directing the artists o n s t a g e , b u t I c a n ' t r e a l l y understand his irony. Anyways, he surely is a talented artist. What is your opinion on the widespread trend of moderniz- ing many operas? If the result is a pleasant and high quality show, then it's fine. Some operas like La Traviata can be easily adapted to a mod- ern setting and interpretation. Nevertheless, most of the operas turn into very bad performances, w h i c h s h o u l d d e f i n i t e l y b e reconsidered. I believe that the main issue regards contemporary critics, who are constantly look- ing for something new, some- thing different. Well, as far as the Opera is concerned, different doesn't really work. There's no life without music. We may all w i s h t o t r a v e l b a c k i n t i m e , when great operas were com- posed, in order to enjoy more and new stories, but we should- n't forget that not all of them deserve such a music adaptation. Continued from page 1 Maria Callas and Franco Zeffirelli. Photo courtesy of Franco Zeffirelli

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