A musical fable in two acts and 10 paintings for soprano, tenor, ten instruments and narrating voices. Music by Roberto Cacciapaglia. Stage design by Achille Lualdi and Maurizia Dotti. Costume Design by Sartoria della Compagnia. Written and directed by Eugenio Monti Colla.
The far east has always had a precise role in the marionette repertory: a remote and unattainable place where lost lovers are reunited, Califfi dispensers of justice and Sultans ready to forgive; the ideal settings for identity and reunions that are typical of the opera. Among the original 18th century text of this kind performed at the Teatro Gerolamo since 1957, has always held a place of honor "La Zamira crudele", or "La donna nemica degli uomini”, or the “Sventure del Principe Alimut", more popularly known by the tittle "Le mille e una notte" which has been applauded many times by the Milan audience. A story of love and death inspired by the theatrical fable "Turandot" by Carlo Gozzi, it was performed for the first time in 1867, when Carlo Colla e Figli was still a travelling company. In this new edition Eugenio Monti Colla has chosen the fable aspect, transforming the original comedy into a musical, where words, gestures and songs complete the specific marionette style, enriching the plot with spectacular elements, a great number of marionettes, musicians, singers, makeup and stage effects. The far east thus reinterpreted with great fantasy does not refuse the allegories and the symbolism, but tends to the grandness and charm of the show.