The life of Giuseppe Tommasi, Prince of Lampedusa (1896-1959) and the semi-fictional characters from his most famous novel, "Il Gattopardo" (source for Visconti's "The Leopard") were the subject of Ruggero Cappuccio's evocative Desideri mortali. Among the more interesting creative talents currently on the Neapolitan scene, Mr. Cappuccio has set his "profane oratorio" in the shadowy world of Cappucine convent crypt in Palermo. Ghosts from Lampedusa's life and novels appear in Garibaldi-era garb and circulate in tightly-choreographed movement.
Seven actresses in varied cream-colored dresses form a chorus of distinct voices that echo and re-echo words in inventive sound collages created by Stefano Martini. Two men plus several of the women emerge from the chorus to recall dramatic events in the lives of Lampedusa, his family and his characters. Largely in Neapolitan and Sicilian dialect, Desideri mortali also creates a link between Naples and Palermo to become a poem to the sensual richness of southern Italy.
