Opera in Tondo? Italian envoy hopes to make it happen
Credit to Author: Ghio Ong| Date: Sun, 4 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0800
MANILA, Philippines — The embassy of Italy in the Philippines bared its plan to stage an all-Filipino opera before an unlikely audience: the young residents of Tondo in Manila.
The Manila Symphony Orchestra will perform “Gianni Schicchi,” a comic opera by Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, at the covered court of the San Pablo Apostol Parish along Velasquez Street in Tondo, Manila, according to Italian Ambassador Mario Clemente.
Clemente said the opera – based on Dante Alighieri’s “Divine Comedy,” a masterpiece of Italian literature – is slated for March 23.
“Gianni Schicchi” is a story of a man who was thrown into the eighth circle of Hell – reserved for tricksters – for disguising as a Florentine aristocrat to be able to amass the wealth of the one he impersonated, according to information from the website of Encyclopædia Britannica.
“This is the first time we will attempt to produce opera in a space that is not an opera house, and which is home to people who do not have many opportunities,” Clemente said at a press conference at the Tondo parish last Thursday.
He added that he is “a little worried” about the embassy’s “extraordinary experiment.”
The Tondo parish – currently supported by the Canossian Fathers, a religious order based in Venice, Italy, according to information from the website of the Canossian Daughters of Charity – can accommodate up to 600 people, mostly Tondo residents, whom Clemente hoped would give opera a chance.
He also wanted children, preferably “middle schoolers and high schoolers,” to watch the performance.
While the envoy pointed out that the opera would be performed entirely in the “original” Italian language, he said he wants to feature Filipino actors, singers and performers.
“The reason why I will never do it with Italians is that I want to promote your talents. This is my not-so-little contribution to the Filipino talent, I want to give Filipino opera singers the opportunity to perform,” he added.
The embassy also plans to tap a Filipino artist knowledgeable about opera to creatively give the audience an idea about the performance during pauses in the performance.
Clemente clarified, though, that the embassy has nothing to do with the artistic demands of the planned opera performance in Tondo, which he said would involve “hundreds of performers.”
By staging an opera in Tondo, he expressed hope that the children there will be “empowered” by the beauty of art and music.
“We are empowering these people. If you give them things to appreciate, like beauty, art and knowledge, we will make life much better than it is now,” he said.
He added he is “confident” about the turnout at the performance.
“We are confident that at an early age, they will find out that something called an opera, for one hour of existence, lifted their spirit and made them happy,” the ambassador said.
The opera is part of the Italian embassy’s series of events in the Tondo parish as part of an Italian festival every month until July this year.
For instance, the embassy launched last Thursday the six-month Italian language classes for 29 children, from grade school to college, who are beneficiaries of the Canossa-Tondo Children Foundation Inc.