Opera

Puccini's La Bohème

A movie adaptation by Luigi Comencini

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Cast

Francesca Comencini — Scenography

Barbara Hendricks — Mimi

Luca Canonici — Rodolfo, actor

José Carreras — Rodolfo, voice

Angela Maria Blasi — Musetta

Program notes

In 1988, Luigi Comencini adapted the beloved Puccini opera La Bohème for the silver screen, a masterful work which was to be one of his last films.

Composed in four tableaux, this opera is often described as one of Puccini’s greatest scores. The forward-looking work unites elements of musical romanticism with the verismo genre, demonstrating perfect orchestral mastery, harmonic innovation and a theatrical language all his own.

With over a century of unwavering success, La Bohème has become a classic. In his film adaptation, Luigi Comencini sets the story in a fully-reconstructed early twentieth century studio, and succeeds in blurring the lines between filmed opera and opera film.

The story:

Paris, 1910. Three friends: Rodolphe the poet, Marcel the painter and Colline the philosopher live on a pittance in an attic room. Mimi, a young neighbour, joins them. Rudolphe falls for her. Soon, the girl, who is sick, begins to complain about Rodolphe’s jealousy.

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