Giuseppe Verdi’s Aida had its first performance in Cairo in 1871, 150 years ago, and, with its story of Ethiopian slaves in ancient Egypt, it has always presented complex messages about race that have shifted with changing historical contexts: from Italy at the time of the Italian wars of the 1890s and 1930s, to America in the age of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s, to the current global movement of Black Lives Matter.
Discussion with:
Latonia Moore, Soprano
Kevin Short, Bass-Baritone
Mary Elizabeth Williams, Soprano
Discussants:
Francesco Izzo, Scientific Director of the Parma Verdi Festival; General Editor of The Works of Giuseppe Verdi, Casa Ricordi/University of Chicago Press; Professor of Music, University of Southampton
Justin Thompson, Director of Black History Month Florence; Lecturer on Drawing at NYU Florence; new media artist
Gaia Varon, Radio host and commentator for La Scala on Rai Radio3; Lecturer on Opera at NYU Florence
Larry Wolff, Professor of European History at NYU, Executive Director of the Remarque Institute; Co-Director, NYU Florence
New York University Florence and the NYU Remarque Institute
in collaboration with Black History Month Florence
Featured Biographies
Latonia Moore
SOPRANO
American soprano from Texas, has sung the role of Aida all over the world, including the Metropolitan Opera in New York, the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden in London, the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, Opera Australia in Sydney, and in Zürich, Warsaw, Tokyo, Dubai, Dallas, San Diego, Pittsburgh, and Detroit.
Kevin Short
BASS-BARITONE
American bass-baritone from Maryland, has sung with the Metropolitan Opera, the New York City Opera, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Basel Opera,the Vienna Volksoper, and numerous other companies. In Aida he has sung both the role of the Egyptian Pharaoh-King and the role of the Ethiopian King Amonasr.
Mary Elizabeth Williams
SOPRANO
American soprano from Pennsylvania, living in Milan. She has sung at La Scala, with the Welsh National Opera, and with Seattle Opera, and many other companies. Verdi is very important in her repertory, and she has sung the role of Aida in the Teatro Massimo in Palermo.