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Camilla
Camilla
Who and why?
Camilla by Giovanni Bononcini is an opera that was first performed in Napels at the Teatro di S Bartolomeo on December 27, 1969. The opera was very popular in England and first performed in London on April 30, 1706. It was based off of Il Trionfo di Camilla, regina de' Volsci by Silvio Stampiglia which was created in the 1660's. The opera was sung originally in both English and Italian. There were three separate productions of the opera in London during 1706 and 1728. The opera has over 100 performances all together and was one of the most popular and successful works during this period.
The plot
Camilla is an alternate ending of Camilla's life. It is loosely based on Camilla from The Aeneid by Virgil. The characters in the opera are Camilla, Prenesto, Latinus, Lavinia, and Turnus. The opera goes over Camilla planning to overthrow King Latinus who has her throne. Camilla disguises herself as a shepherdess by the name Dorinda. She is in a situation where she saves Prenesto, the son of the King, and he falls in love with her for saving his life. Meanwhile, Lavinia and Turnus fall in love causing Latinus and Turnus to become allies against Camilla. She was taken as a prisoner but was released by Prenesto's love for her. Camilla's troops were able to defeat Latinus and despite political rivalry, Camilla and Prenesto marry.
Interpretation & Photo Interpretation
This interpretation and characterization of Camilla no longer focuses on her virginity and chastity. She is still fierce and willing to go to whatever lengths needed to achieve her goals. In other interpretations of Camilla, she is to proud to settle down and devotes her time to becoming better. In this opera, she is still achieving her goals but also gets love out of it. Camilla's ending is tragic, but in the opera she is given a new chance. Although she marries she is able to get her throne back that was taken from her father. I believe that the hidden message in the opera is that even if you marry you can still reach your goals. Marriage is what helps you and pushes you forward. During the time that the opera came out, marriage was needed for women to advance. Women were expected to marry and produce children for their husband. The opera influences women to want to marry instead of being independent.
Novel cover photo of Queen of the Silver Arrow by Caroline Lawrence
This photo of Camilla is from the novel Queen of the Silver Arrow. It shoes her in a modern lens as well as twenty first century beauty standards. Camilla has the look of determination and strength. Since she is the only person in the photo it allows people to focus on her. Also, notice how she is wearing white which again can be connected to her purity or connection to the gods and goddesses. The arrows behind her shoulder also remind us of her skillfulness in hunting and battle.
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