Photos from Hollywood: Ritratto di un Divo printed with permission from Gianni Togni.
Italy Salutes John Gilbert with Hollywood: Ritratto di un Divo
Hollywood: Ritratto di un Divo (translated Hollywood: Portrait of a Myth), which has been on tour for two years, opened at the Sistina Theatre in Rome September 28, 1999, to a packed house. Singers, politicians, TV personalities, and other celebrities attended the spellbinding musical that masterfully highlihghts Gilbert's career and his star-crossed relationship with Greta Garbo (Yulka Bedeschi). Other main characters include MGM's Louis B. Mayer (Gianluca Terranova) and Gilbert's third wife, Ina Claire (Barbara di Bartolo). The play, like the real-life story, is spiced with humor, romance, drama, and tragedy.
Massimo Ranieri is perfectly cast as John Gilbert, a.k.a. The Great Lover of the Silver Screen. Like Gilbert, he is tall, good-looking, charismatic, and radiates raw masculinity. A pop/rock singer and gifted actor with a flair for comedy, Ranieri is immensely popular in Italy and is internationally known. His CDs--such as Ti Penso, Un Giorno Bellissimo, Rose Rosse and Canzoni in Corso--are available throughout Italy and at Amazon.com and Tower Records. He starred with Yul Brynner in Death Rage (1977) and was the voice of Quasimodo in Il Gobbo di Notre Dame, the Italian version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Disney, 1996).
Gianni Togni composed the musical score to Hollywood, and Guido Morro wrote the text. With or without the English translation, the play is a delight to see and hear, because the language of music and the language of love are universal.
January 17, 2000, was Hollywood's last night of the season. Performances will resume in Italy and elsewhere in Europe in July.