\n\tGiuseppe Verdi\u00a0composed some of the greatest operas ever \u2013\u00a0La Traviata,\u00a0Il Trovatore,\u00a0Rigoletto,\u00a0Aida,\u00a0Otello and many others. But he regarded his finest accomplishment not as a particular opera but another great project: the building of a retirement home for singers and musicians.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tCasa\u00a0Verdi\u00a0stands to this day on the Piazza Michelangelo Buonarroti in Milan, having welcomed more than 1,500 retirees since it opened more than a century ago. The Oscar-contending documentary\u00a0Viva\u00a0Verdi!\u00a0enters this remarkable dwelling where violinists, harpists, percussionists, pianists and singers from soprano to basso live their golden years in a splendidly music-filled environment.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWhen I walked in for the first time, I could hear almost like sonic colors that were floating through the hallways,\u201d writer-director-producer Yvonne Russo<\/a> recalled as she took part in a panel discussion at Deadline\u2019s Contenders Documentary<\/a> virtual event. \u201cI just knew, wow, this place is pretty magical. \u2026 Giuseppe\u00a0Verdi\u00a0willed his fortune to create this home, and there\u2019s no other place like it in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe film from La Monte Productions<\/a>, SimonSays Entertainment<\/a> and Wanbli<\/a> introduces us to Claudio Giombi, Lina Vasta, Anthony Kaplen, Chitose Matsumoto and other Casa\u00a0Verdi\u00a0residents. Matsumoto, a singer and pianist from Japan who made her career in Italy, told the filmmakers she would be homeless were in not for Casa\u00a0Verdi. Writer-producer-EP Christine La Monte<\/a> discovered what the Casa di Riposo means to its guests.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cFirst of all, you see these little\u00a0Verdi\u00a0altars in every room,\u201d La Monte noted. \u201cAll of [the guests] say, \u2018My dreams have come true here. I don\u2019t have to think about work. I can work with other artists.\u2019 It\u2019s a dream come true for all of them.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tRELATED: Contenders Documentary \u2014 Deadline\u2019s Complete Coverage<\/a><\/p>\n