19 June,2009 09:47 AM IST | | Soumya Mukerji
Opera, silly. In a first of its kind festival in town, Cinderella and Julius Caesar will be seen getting a lyrical high on the big screen
Few things are as mesmeric as the marriage of libretto and lyre, especially when you get to witness the wondrous wedding on a splendid silver screen. Yes, it's reminiscent of the good old days when a now-sleepy Shakuntalam was full of Gold Rushes and magnum opuses, but that was once upon a time. Those free-time fairytales have now made way for new lessons in lavish leisure, the kind that come in the form of three opulent Italian oeuvres to be screened in a popular multiplex about town. The opera festival, being organised by Big Cinemas and London-based group More2Screen over the weekend, aims to bring more 'cultural class' to India. The teachers: Cinderella and Caesar, to name a few.
Hatke high
Classical as the renditions may sound, they are anything but conventional. Apart from the music, dance, drama and surreal scenery, expect unexpected twists and turns in the three acts that are part of the affair La Cenerentola (Cinderella), Giulio Cesare (Julius Caesar) and Salute Petra: A tribute to Pavarotti. Fairy Godmothers are replaced with farce, and Caesar's cunningness with loony love. But the grandeur, of course, stays in tact.
"Global awareness among Indian audiences has made them desirous of distinct international experiences; and so, innovative alternate content like this, we felt, would be appreciated," says Tushar Dhingra, COO, Big Cinemas, as the event gets ready to travel across cities like Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Pune and Kolkata, too. All the operas will be presented in Italian with English subtitles, and wine and cheese come with the package. That should be enough of a perk in lieu of your wish for a live act, we suppose.
Opera festival
Where: Big Cinemas, The Great India Place, Noida
When: Tomorrow and June 21, 7.30 pm onwards
Tickets: Rs 1,000, available through phone and Web booking
Dress Code: All black
Ring: 0120-3019522,
Visit: https://www.bigcinemas.com/
Opera-tion theatre
La Cenerentola: Based on the classic story of Cinderella, Rossini's much-loved comic opera is no fairytale. Glyndebourne's music director Vladimir Jurowski and Sir Peter Hall unite in this timelessly elegant production of this social comedy, where love triumphs over malice.
Giulio Cesare: This critically acclaimed Glyndebourne production won the 2006 South Bank Show Award for Best Opera. It is a study of political maneuveringu00a0 as the imperialistic nobility of Caesar's Romans meets the passionate and cunning world of Cleopatra's Egypt.
Salute Petra A tribute to Pavarotti: Shot in High Definition on one amazing weekend in Petra, it is a tribute concert to the late Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti, performed in front of an exclusively invited audience of royalty, classical and popular music stars at the world heritage site Petra, Jordan.
