‘A santanotte
Cine-concert | Il Cinema Ritrovato, Bologna, 25 June 2025
On 25 June 2025, in the evocative setting of Piazzetta Pasolini in Bologna, ‘A santanotte by Elvira Coda Notari was presented with live music as part of the prestigious international festival Il Cinema Ritrovato, organised by the Cineteca di Bologna and devoted to major restorations from film history.
It was the first event held under the patronage of the Comitato Nazionale per le celebrazioni del 150° anniversario della nascita della regista, marking a new step in the rediscovery and circulation of her work.
The evening was introduced by Antonella Di Nocera (Comitato Elvira Notari 150), Maria Coletti (CSC – Cineteca Nazionale) and Elena Correra (Cineteca di Bologna).
The film, restored in 2008 by CSC – Cineteca Nazionale in collaboration with Associazione Orlando and the George Eastman House, was screened in a colour print created from two different elements: a black-and-white duplicate negative preserved at the Cineteca Nazionale and a nitrate print with tinting indications from the archives of the George Eastman House.
The live musical accompaniment was performed by the Passo 16 collective:
Michele Signore (violin, mandoloncello, mandolin), Umberto Maisto (guitars and plucked strings), Anastasia Cecere (flutes), Simona Frasca (clarinet), Dolores Melodia (voice and accordion).
The texts were written by Pasquale Ziccardi and Alessio Sollo, with contributions by Pasquale Fama and Ferdinando Russo.
Drawn from a famous Neapolitan song, ‘A santanotte is one of the few films by Elvira Notari at Dora Film that can still be seen today. Released in Italian cinemas on 24 December 1922, it stands as one of the high points of popular Neapolitan melodrama.
Its protagonist is Nanninella, played by Rosè Angione, a young woman exploited by her father and forced into marriage in a desperate attempt to save her beloved from a murder accusation. The ending is tragic: stabbed in her wedding dress, in the most intense tradition of the sceneggiata.
The cast also includes Eduardo Notari – son of Elvira and Nicola – in the recurring role of Gennariello, Alberto Danza (Tore Spina), Elisa Cava (Tore’s mother), and Carluccio, a young student from the Dora Film acting school.
The film is striking for its emotional intensity, its documentary-style location shooting, and its original portrayal of women’s condition in the working-class neighbourhoods of Naples. It becomes an indictment of patriarchal violence, rendered through a powerful and popular visual language.
The restoration was carried out within the framework of the project Non solo dive. Pioniere del cinema italiano, dedicated to recognising women’s contribution to the silent film industry.
The version with original music premiered on 27 February 2025 at Teatro Bolivar in Naples, as part of the Elvira 150 programme. The Bologna cine-concert marked its first national touring presentation.
