Elisabetta Armiato, formerly Étoile at La Scala Theatre, presented “La Tosca” at San Vittore.
December 7th was an exceptional day, not only for the lucky ones who were be able to attend La Scala Theatre for the Premiere of Puccini’s Tosca directed by Livermore, but also as a moment of cultural and civil responsibility for the prisoners of the San Vittore Prison.
Elisabetta Armiato, formerly Étoile of La Scala Theatre, today President of the Cultural Foundation PENSARE oltre, presented the Puccini opera in San Vittore.
Daughter of a lyric tenor, raised within the walls of the great Milanese theater, the artist hold the Opera close to her heart, having danced many times on the occasion of the La Scala premieres on December 7th.
Her sparkling interpretations are memorable in the divertissement of the Sicilian Vespers, in Verdi’s Aida and as Iphigenia in Gluck’s Aulide.
“I am a true lover of melodrama, in particular of the Puccini Opera, for me the most vibrant and rich in both musical and interpretative nuances, “ says Armiato. “The art relates human events, but it does so with empathy and amplification of feelings, telling a story with a message that speaks to everyone.”
This was a cultural occasion, but above all a civic responsibility, strongly desired by the Director of San Vittore Giacinto Siciliano.
The idea of telling Tosca’s story within the great Milanese prison arose directly from the humanitarian motivation of Elisabetta Armiato, whose Foundation PENSARE oltre developed and disseminates the educational model of Masters of Arts for Childhood.
The Étoile was accompanied by two Masters of Art who collaborated on the project: the soprano Consuelo Gilardoni and the pianist Silvia Leggio, who performed arias from Tosca.
“Living and creating art with real artists is not an experience to be relegated to entertainment or art therapy,” continued Armiato. “It is the condition of life of every human. Art is a feeling and an expression of oneself; something that we do starting early in childhood, and manifested in every significant action we take. Even setting a table can be art. When the ability to create something beautiful burns out in ourselves, then we die inside.”
The famous Puccini Opera takes place for the most part in a prison, where the handsome painter Cavaradossi is imprisoned by the cruel Scarpi, chief of the guards, who wants to subdue and possess Tosca, a beautiful singer and the artist’s lover, in exchange for the freedom of her beloved. Through a series of deceptions, everyone eventually dies.
“I wanted to talk about Tosca to the prisoners, because in my opinion it is a work that reminds us that our destiny is often the consequence of a chain of our own choices. Sometimes we act badly in an attempt to solve a problem, but inevitably sooner or later life takes a toll,” concluded Armiato.
An artistic event that hopefully inspired reflection, critical awareness and the will to change one’s destiny.
