Viva Verdi!

One of the most inspiring messages I’ve run across in my life maintains that “The greatest joy is in creation,” a message that, ironically, came my way via a Chinese fortune cookie just as I had begun work on my first book. The timing couldn’t have been better, as this sentiment fed directly into my writing. It proved to me at the time – and ever since – that creativity is essential to help keep us feeling young, fulfilled and vital. And that lesson has also been crucial in the lives and well-being of the residents of Casa Verdi, a retirement facility in Milan, Italy for aging musicians established by famed operatic composer Giuseppe Verdi. At the time it was built at the turn of the 20th Century, Verdi wanted to provide help to retired musicians who needed financial and housing assistance in their later years. But his vision for the facility was much more than that – it was also set up as a haven for these artists where they could remain immersed in their music, a place where they could continue to perform for their peers and the public, as well as serve as mentors for aspiring young musicians. Casa Verdi thus gave its residents both a home, as well as a venue where they could feel useful, inspired, and, above all, youthful, their age notwithstanding. (Its essence, then, is very much like the musicians’ retirement community depicted in the narrative feature “Quartet” (2012).) In this captivating documentary, writer-director Yvonne Russo takes viewers inside this artistic sanctuary, providing an intimate look at how it has enabled its residents to feel a sense of renewal at a time many of their elderly peers might otherwise be winding down and withdrawing from life. The facility thus validates the sentiment noted at the outset above, giving those approaching the end of their lives purpose and joy for the time they have left. That’s a laudable mission, to be sure, one that provides benefits for helping to sustain and even help heal the body and the soul at a time when such nurturing is often needed most. Because of Casa Verdi’s success in that endeavor, this chronicle of that effort makes “Viva Verdi!” one of the most uplifting pictures that I have seen in some time. In fact, if I had any complaint at all, it would be that I wish it had been longer than its 1:18:00 runtime. The residents’ stories and performances (both archival and in the film itself) are rich, colorful and fulfilling, brimming with a sense of genuine pride and pleasure, rewarding experiences that have given them (and, by extension, us) tremendous satisfaction, enjoyment and fulfillment. The picture has even earned an Oscar nomination for best original song, “Sweet Dreams of Joy,” which can be heard playing over the closing credits. Fans of opera and fine arts truly owe much to the creatives featured in this film. But they and we also need to thank Verdi for his generosity in founding the institution that bears his name, helping to make their final years among the best of their lives. We can only hope that all of us end up being just as fortunate.