« De la vierge imbécile à l’intelligence du cœur. La Dame aux Camélias en Italie »

This paper aims at a bringing to light the shift of meaning ingrained in the Lady of Camelias by the Italian stage interpretation of the Dumas fils’ play. Eleonora Duse’s ‘minimization’ of the social aspects of the drama ushered in a new understanding of the main character Marguerite, who became the victim of a hypocritical and false set of moral values. Verdi’s opera contributed also to this melodramatic turn, that came to its culmination with Lella Costa’s play La Traviata. The reasons of the heart, staged for the first time in 2002. In this interpretation, that combines theatre staging with video and opera singing, Marguerite still represents the courtesans, but not to blame or admonish them: to praise their humanity.