Sylvano Bussotti – Regie 1980-90

My career as a photographer was very short; I was never satisfied with the results, I probably didn’t work hard enough. I owe a great deal to Alain Daniélou, with whom I lived for a long time, but also to the painter Mac Avoy, who was an excellent teacher, to the choreographer Maurice Béjart, who allowed me to photograph his shows both in terms of staging and production, to the photographer Angelo Frontoni, who encouraged me in my first steps, and finally to Sylvano Bussotti, who, through his kindness and perseverance, supported my work, himself a model on several occasions.

I followed Bussotti for several years, photographing him and his performances, including :

Representation of soul and body, Teatro dei Rinnovati, Siena 1980

Simone Boccanegra, Rome Opera 1980

Otello, Teatro Politeama, Palermo 1980

Carmen, Teatro Civico di Susa 1980

Turandot, Torre del Lago Puccini 1982 and Terme di Caracalla 1985

Tosca, Verona Arena 1984

Ulisse, Teatro Regio Turin 1985

La Gioconda, Florence Municipal Theatre 1986

Aida, Rome Baths of Caracalla 1987

L’Ispirazione, Florence Municipal Theatre 1989

La Racine, Rome, Villa Medici 1985

Fedra, Rome Opera House 1989

I spent a week in Palermo, at the Politeama theater, to observe the enormous amount of work involved in setting up an opera, the extraordinary coordination between the conductor, the leads, the chorus, the extras and the stagehands. It was a real tour de force, giving me a better understanding and appreciation of the work I was witnessing.

I went backstage, into the sewing and set design workshops; above all, I admired Maestro Bussotti’s patience in staging these “monuments”.

I was also very interested in the voices off-stage. In the second act of Tosca, Sylvano thought it was a good idea to place a large cage with vultures in the dining room of the Palazzo Farnese, as it perfectly matched the dark soul of Scarpia’s character.

Unfortunately, the vultures, frightened by the music to which they were certainly not accustomed, became so immobile that it made more sense to replace them with stuffed animals!

At Torre del Lago, after the enormous efforts made to stage a grandiose Turandot, only one thing was not yet ready: part of the stalls. Security even threatened not to let the audience in.

Sylvano, like any director, had assistants, but it was up to him to solve all the problems and make all the decisions.

Many of the photos we’ve found are not good ones, but we’re not making this album to criticize the photographer.

This album was created as a tribute to the Maestro, and to admire the sets and costumes he created for his shows: the carpets for Othello, the ceiling for La Gioconda, the flying saucers for L’Inspiration, the enormous golden frame for Phaedra, the stage and costumes for The Representation of Body and Soul, the immense and splendid sets for Aida at the Baths of Caracalla and Tosca at the Arena in Verona.

A complete artist, composer, painter, decorator, designer, poet and director: linked to the Renaissance and the Baroque, Bussotti is not at ease with the apparent austerities of the 21st century.

Dear Maestro, thank you so much for all the emotions you have given us.

Happy birthday, dear Sylvano, for your four times twenty years and many happy returns…

Jacques Cloarec

The Labyrinth
October 1st, 2011