Time 18:30

LA MUSICA E LE RAGIONI DELL'ANIMA - LYRIC MONOLOGUE WITH KIERAN WHITE

Kieran White, Haute-Contre
Marcio da Silvastage and music direction
Francesco Vitaliset, costumes, lights
Alec Borehamset collaboration - assistant
GIARDINO22 ARTLAB MILANO, AUDIOLUCI.COMvideo-projection and cameras
Ensemble OrQuesta
   Edmund Taylorviolin
   Kirsty Main, violin
   Ana Torbica, viola da braccio
   Nathan Giorgietti, gamba
   Pablo Tejedor-Gutiérrez, cello
   Paul Jenkins, recorder 
   Céline Pasche, recorder /harp
   Cédric Meyer, archlute 
   Stephanie Gurga, harpsichord/organ
   
   Predrag Gosta
, Harpsichord / Percussion
   Marcio da SilvaHarpsichord / Baroque guitar / Percussion


Music by C. Monteverdi, F. Cavalli, G. Carissimi

Created and developed by Francesco Vitali, Marcio da Silva, Kieran White

New Co-production Ponchielli Theatre Foundation/Ensemble OrQuesta


Music programme:

I
Rendetemi - L’Egisto - Francesco Cavalli
Playfulness

II
Nigra sum - Vespro della Beata Vergine - Claudio Monteverdi
Joyfulness

III
O Quam Pulchra es - Claudio Monteverdi
Lust

IV
Ombra mai fu - Xerse - Francesco Cavalli
Love

V
Notte, che nel profondo oscuro seno chiudeste - Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda - Claudio Monteverdi
Courage

VI
Si dolce è’l tormento - Claudio Monteverdi
Disillusion

***

VII
O dolor, o mártir che l’alma attrista - Il ritorno di Ulisse in Patria - Claudio Monteverdi
Addiction

VIII
Lasso io vivo - L’Egisto - Francesco Cavalli
Fear

IX
Celesti fulmini - L’Egisto - Francesco Cavalli
Anger

X
Justus Es Domine - Jonas - Giacomo Carissimi
Desperation

XI
Possente Spirto - L’Orfeo - Claudio Monteverdi
Sadness

XII
Oblivion Soave - L’Incoronazione di Poppea - Claudio Monteverdi
Isolation


MUSIC AND THE SENSES OF THE SOUL, A LYRICAL MONOLOGUE WITH KIERAN WHITE

For me, the essential inspiration for this production was the vibrant music of Monteverdi, and the extraordinary ability that he and his contemporaries had to convey the vivid tapestry of human emotions through their music. 

By selecting a pasticcio of 12 arias and ritornelli, I have endeavoured to use Monteverdi’s musical world to narrate the abstract life journey of a symbolic or representative man, with each musical interlude representing a different emotion (Playfulness, Joy, Lust, Love, Courage, Disillusion, Addiction, Fear, Anger, Despair, Sadness and Isolation). The physicality of those emotions is explored through both vocal expression and movement. 

Within the abstract narration, each emotion relates to a specific moment in the man’s life journey. As the set suggests, there is a closed loop – or circle of life – so the end is connected to the beginning, but the emotions are not portrayed chronologically. The arias selected are unrelated and have been positioned within the framework of the production in a manner that removes that aspect of time which so often dominates human experience – simple narrative causality. This is designed to challenge our perception of the impact of emotions on our psyche – our understanding of the relationship between emotion and experience. 

The number 12 was chosen because of its significance in life and history, most especially in the measurement of time; 12 as a dimension of space and time; 12 hours; 12 months; 12 stations of the moon and the sun; 12 zodiac signs; 12 chromatic notes; 12 apostles; 12 Olympians. This number contributes to the sense of universality - it connects our past to our future and connects us across cultures.

Through Kieran White’s insightful musicality and dramatic ability, we hope to create a unique bridge between Monteverdi’s powerfully beautiful music and our audience. 
Marcio da Silva – Music and Stage Director

 

The action for this piece takes place in a luminous circle - like a clock that marks time. Here, however, there is no direction of time: rather, the circle represents divine strength and its link with the sky. Our character, like Leonardo’s Vitruvian man, is inside his own universe, inside the womb of mother earth. This represents the insignificance and fragility of his own existence. 

The essence of our character’s existence is portrayed through the music of Monteverdi, Cavalli and Carissimi, which creates a unique and interchangeable musical world. In their music, one experiences great flexibility, energy, and balance. The purity of their music represents true human feelings, facilitating a strong connection between performer and audience. 

The costume design, created in shades of black, fosters an awareness of an inverse timeline, encouraging us to explore and deconstruct the full impact of life experiences. Sometimes it takes us back to the seventeenth century, sometimes refers us to a contemporary world close to us and more recognizable almost like a punk rock star. Whereas in life layers of emotional detritus are insidiously added, here the representative man begins his journey symbolically fully clothed, with regrets and memories, and, as he explores emotions through the music, he sheds accumulated elements. He ends naked – all the emotions have been laid bare. The addition of the bright red cloth serves as a versatile element, representing variously blood, love, fear, heat, and protection.
Francesco Vitali – Set, lights and costume designer

Location

Position number on map

Buy online

Tickets 



fullreduced*
stalls and boxes€ 30,00€ 26,00
gallery€ 26,00€ 22,00
loggione€ 22,00€ 18,00
students tickets**
(assigned ticket)
€ 12,00

*reduced ticket for: Fai, Touring Club, Welcome Card and CartaEffe La Feltrinelli owners, junior under 30, organized groups (more than 15 people)

**reduction for under-30 students

 

Copyright  2024 © Monteverdi Festival