Valentino and Sofia Coppola – for Opera La Traviata

The Italian opera scene has been shaken recently. Valentino Garavani and Sofia Coppola have produced a modern version of Verdi’s Opera… La Traviata.

It is not the first time that fashion mixes with Opera, actually it is quite an usual combination… Armani, Lagerfeld, Prada, Ungaro, Versace…They have all done it… However, what makes this one special is a combination of factors… Cinema, fashion and Opera.

• Sofia Coppola, the successful and awarded film director was called to run this production to give it a modern and unconventional touch, the cinema aspect into the production… to revamp the Rome Opera vibe, which has been left behind by the success of its sister Opera house, la Scala in Milan.
• Valentino Garavani, the Master of Italian fashion… He himself designed and executed the costumes of the Opera, including the 4 magnificent dresses that Violetta, the main character wears throughout the play. One of the dresses took 800 hours of Valentino’s work.
• The Maison Valentino has designed and produced the costumes of the Opera.

Sofia’s cineast view and input was important to this production. It was expected that her ability to express the female psycho would be reflected in the performance of Violetta. Some critics were very positive of the outcome, some not so much… however the combination seemed to have worked very well, as the 15 shows were sold out in a matter of hours and it is noticed that a new and young audience has been attending the Opera.

I always loved Opera and have several times taken my children to attend different ones from very early age… This was was a splendid venue to attend.

Enjoy the pictures and stay tuned for the next productions…

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