Woody Allen makes La Scala debut

(ANSA) - Milan, July 3 - Woody Allen is directing Giacomo Puccini's comic opera 'Gianni Schicchi' at Milan's La Scala Theater debuting on Saturday.
    The 83-year-old director, whose latest film did not hit movie theaters for a year over allegations of sexual abuse on Allen's part, is in Milan ahead of the European release of 'A Rainy Day in New York'.
    The film is coming out in October in Italy.
    The director is also preparing for his next film in Spain and is scheduled to fly to San Sebastian after the opera's debut on Saturday.
    Speaking at a press conference, Allen said that he is "very active" and that he has enjoyed a break from filming to put on stage an opera "in such an iconic place", referring to La Scala.
    Allen first directed Puccini's one-act opera in Los Angeles in 2008, at the insistence of Placido Domingo.
    The production subsequently premiered in other locations, including Spoleto in Italy.
    'Gianni Schicchi' is being performed alongside Antonio Salieri's 'First the Music, Then the Words', directed by Grischa Asagaroff.
    The majority of the performers are students from La Scala's Academy.
    Speaking about his debut at La Scala, Allen said it was a dream come true to stage an opera in "the greatest opera theater in the world".
    The prolific filmmaker said 'Gianni Schicchi' is the right opera for him - short and fun.
    Allen said he staged it in the neorealist style of 1950s directors like Vittorio De Sica.
    He said previous ideas to make Schicchi a rat among mice or a cigarette among organic produce were rejected as "terrible".
    The opera is based on an incident in Dante's "Divine Comedy" in which the title character is condemned to hell for profiting from a ruse.
    The version debuting on Saturday is similar to the production first debuted in Los Angeles although the ending, in which Gianni was stabbed by Zita, is different, Allen said.
    The director said he had a "new idea" when he saw students performing on stage and that he told them about it just this week while keeping it a secret for the public until Saturday.
    La Scala's superintendent Alexander Pereira expressed satisfaction.
    Pereira has always invested in the Academy, inviting great directors to work with students.
    He has previously invited artists such as Peter Stein, Liliana Cavani and Leo Nucci.
    The guest stars this time are Allen and baritone Ambrogio Maestri.