In Torre del Lago, by Lake Massaciuccoli, Puccini is writing "The Girl of the Golden West" when his wife Elvira accuses him of a dalliance with their maid, Doria Manfredi, a young women from town. Although the maestro is frequently unfaithful, he denies the affair; Elvira insists she's right and publicly hounds Doria. Between scenes in this domestic drama that turns tragic, we watch a Scottish company rehearse and stage "Turandot," Puccini's last opera. The film finds parallels between the two stories and suggests that in the opera, Puccini expresses love for his wife and guilt in Doria's fate. Three local gentlemen provide a spoken chorus as Puccini's score plays throughout.

Genres

Cast

Robert Stephens

Giacomo Puccini

Virginia McKenna

Elvira

Judith Howarth

Doria / Liu

Robert Urquhart

Doria's Father

Bill Fraser

Fucini, the Lawyer

William Squire

Giacchi, the Doctor

Andrew Cruickshank

Father Michelucci

Rupert Graves

Tonio

Ronald Pickup

Giulio Ricordi