Addio del passato

Late in 2000, with the approach of the centennial of the death of Verdi, the idea emerged to produce a film about the composer of La Traviata and his relationship with the city of Piacenza, where he was from.
Director Marco Bellochio tried to track down old melodies through the inhabitants of Piacenza, convinced he would thus uncover the roots of Verdi's music and his melodramas. But, most of all, he sought out the place where the singers and chorus members used to meets every Tuesday morning to sing. Then he was introduced to a 15-year-old girl, who was blessed with a stunningly beautiful voice. She inspired Bellochio so much that he inserted her into the films as the link with the tradition of Piacenza.
Whether in the theater, the historic settings of Villanova d'Arda, the conversatory, or even the restaurant, Verdi's La Traviata is still alive. Bellochio's vision of the opera illuminates the Verdi tradition but also those who sing it, as well as the music of Piacenza.