The Joy You Feel: CVRep’s Wonderful Production of ‘The Light in the Piazza’ Is Entertaining in Multiple Ways
Florence, Italy, in the 1950s is the setting for The Light in the Piazza. Elizabeth Spencer’s novella tells the story of Americans Margaret Johnson and her daughter, Clara, as they visit the city where Margaret and her husband honeymooned years before.
With a guidebook in hand, Margaret wants Clara to see and learn about some of the city’s cultural treasures. Clara’s blonde beauty stands out in sharp contrast to the dark-haired locals—and she meets Fabrizio, a handsome young local man. This leads to a romantic storyline fraught with spoken-language difficulties, cultural complications and a few unknown facts that may ultimately prevent a happy ending.
A film based on the novel was made in 1962 starring Olivia de Havilland as the mother. In the early 2000s, playwright Craig Lucas adapted the story into a musical; Adam Guettel wrote the music and lyrics. The new musical premiered on June 14, 2003, in Seattle; after being presented in Chicago in 2004, it opened on Broadway in April 2005. It won six Tony Awards, including Best Score and Best Orchestrations.
This CVRep production of Piazza is the third I’ve seen—and it’s absolutely luminescent.
