Venice: I Imagined Duse as Dear Friend Says Bruni Tedeschi

Venice: Valeria Bruni Tedeschi said Wednesday she imagined great 19th-20th century Italian actress Eleonora Duse as a dear friend in her portrayal of ‘La Divina’ in Pietro Marcello’s ‘Duse’, the second Italian film in competition in Venice after Paolo Sorrentino’s La Grazia, which opened the world’s oldest film festival on the Lido last week.

According to Ansa News Agency, Bruni Tedeschi explained her unique approach to a new character, in this case Marcello’s biopic, in competition today at the Venice International Film Festival and in theaters from September 18th with PiperFilm. “I often work with the character I play as if she were someone I met on a train and who I immediately become friends with and who ultimately even cares for me a little,” she said.

The story focuses on this legendary and mysterious character in the final part of her career, in her autumn, between the Great War and the rise of fascism. The artist, although very ill, wants to return to acting and still wants the stage.

“I’ve always been fascinated by characters in revolt,” explains Pietro Marcello. “From the subject, I immediately thought of Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, but what I wanted to portray about this woman is her spirit.”

Marcello chose to tell the story of the last years, those of dissolution, through a 19th-century character who emerges into the 20th century, a time like today, marked by sloth, in which everything is permitted and nothing is true. Bruni Tedeschi emphasizes: “When I was young, I had a coach who used the Strasberg method and talked to us a lot about Duse.”

“At the Actors Studio, they had a huge photo of her; Lee Strasberg adored her because he was convinced she was using his method, unknowingly.”