La Musica Lirica

31 loading the truck for pennabilli

The theatre in Pennabilli sent its own truck that morning; we were surprised to learn that there were no sides. We also had to leave the scenery at the theatre overnight and return in the morning to strike. Fortunatley, Pennabilli was only about a half hour away from Novafeltria.

32 the truck unloaded in pennabilli

The truck, unloaded, in the narrow lane next to the theatre. That rusticated archway to the left in the stage door. Despite the interesting truck issue, this was one of the most pleasant load-ins we experienced.

33.5 teatro vittoira

The front of the Teatro Vittoria. The theatre itself is a couple hundred years old, but was thoroughly renovated about fifteen years ago. Some of the residences abutting the theatre were given to the theatre to increase the backstage and provide more dressing room space.

33 teatro vittoria in pennabilli

The interior, from the booth, as we set up for Suor Angelica and La Cambiale di Matrimonio.
37 FOH pennabilli

The view from the stage.

36 dimmers and patch bay in pennabilli

The dimmers and patch panel.

35 light board du jour

And the board du jour. . .

46 resistant dimmer on display in pennabilli

. . . which was a far cry better than the old resistance dimmer they had on display in the lobby.

38 the crew and franco in pennabilli

After setting up, the house man, Franco, took us on a biref tour, stopping at the overlook atop the mountain. from the left, it’s Franco, Renee (set designer/TD), Brandon (SM), Anna (SM for Figaro), Milly (painter), and Maura (props).

39 pennabilli from above

The view from the peak down into the town.

40in the orchard of forgotten fruit

The town is also the adopted home of the artist Tonino Guerro. One of his installations is “The Garden of Forgotten Fruit,’ a small orchard planted with antique varieties of fruit trees.

42 art of tonino guarre in pennabilli

Another Guerro piece near the theatre.

41 wicked cool chai in pennabilli

Pennabilli is also a center of antiques; here’s a very cool chair way beyond my budget.

43 hookup dujour in pennabilli

Pennabilli’s hookup du jour.

44 suor in pennabilli

Suor Angelica in performance.

45 suor in pennabilli

The final moments of Suor.

47 setting up for figaro in novafeltria

The next day, after returning to Pennabilli to collect the scenery, we performed Le Nozze di Figaro in our home space in Novafeltria. Here is the set, getting set up.

48 sean in novafeltria

And lighting intern Sean Houston fiddling with the preset. As noted earlier, curtain times were rather malleable, so audience drifted in early, drifted in late, and when enough people seemed to be present, the show started. . .

49 day off montebello

The next day was our day off, and while there was a group trip to Venice (leaving at an ungodly hour in the morning), much of the tech staff decided to forgo the five hour bus ride and enjoy the area around Novafeltria. Our production assistant Antonio suggested a day trip to Montebello, where his girlfriend had been a tourguide for many years. It was also the home of Azuretta, the blue ghost, and a cache of medieval furniture that had been discovered in an abandoned cellar. Sadly, we weren’t allowed to photograph the interior.

50 renee and antonio day off

The views, though, were spectacular. Here’s Renee and Antonio at one of the overlooks.

51 san marino from montebello

The view in the opposite direction, across the valley. That’s San Marino, covering that mountain in the distance.

52 looking toward Novafeltria from montebllo

And the view looking back toward Novafeltria. The lone knob to the right, in the distance, in Maioletta, a former hill town overlooking Novafeltria.