TREASURE ISLAND to Play the New Victory Theater in March

Three centuries of Italy's rich cultural heritage are on full display with Carlo Colla & Sons Marionette Company (The Pied Piper, New Victory 2016; Sleeping Beauty, New Victory 2013) and their rendition of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic pirate tale, Treasure Island. Set sail as 12 puppeteers animate exquisitely handcrafted marionettes to tell the swashbuckling adventures of cabin boy Jim Hawkins. The famed troupe from Milan puts 19th-century artistry center stage in this visually stunning production. The world premiere of the English translation of Treasure Island plays at the New Victory Theater from March 20 - 29, 2020.

Over the past 300 years, the Colla studio has built a collection of more than 3,000 marionettes. They all begin as blocks of wood that are carved into figures roughly two and a half feet tall, transformed with delicate facial features, realistic glass eyes, wigs and costumes. The creation process takes roughly a week and is the handiwork of many people, some of whom learned the craft from their fathers, and all of whom work during the season as puppeteers.

Today, Carlo Colla & Sons Marionette Company is one of the most recognized puppet theaters in the world, performing nationally and internationally for audiences of adults and young people. Based in Milan, the company tours internationally, participating in prestigious arts festivals in Edinburgh, Paris, Berlin, Sydney, Melbourne, Charleston, SC and Mexico City, among others, In 1984, the new generation of puppeteers created the Associazione Grupporiani under the artistic direction of the late Eugenio Monti Colla, the last puppeteer of the Colla family. Since 2000, the company has collaborated with the Piccolo Teatro of Milan-Teatro d'Europa, and presents in Milan at the Piccolo Teatro and at the Atelier Carlo Colla e Figli. In 2007, the company received accolades in the U.S. for their co-production of Macbeth with the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, which was presented at the New Victory Theater that same year. The company returned to the New Victory in 2013 with their production of Sleeping Beauty, and again in 2016 with The Pied Piper.

The puppeteers behind Treasure Island are Franco Citterio, Maria Grazia Citterio, Piero Corbella, Camillo Cosulich, Debora Coviello, Carlo Decio, Cecilia Di Marco, Tiziano Marcolegio, Pietro Monti, Giovanni Schiavolin and Paolo Sette. Eugenio Monti Colla is the writer, Franco Citterio and Giovanni Schiavolin are directors; Franco Citterio is the artistic director, scenic and lighting designer; Giovanni Schiavolin, Paolo Sette, Camillo Cosulich & Pietro Monti are toolmakers. Cecilia Di Marco is the costume designer and constructor; Debora Coviello is the marionette dresser; Maria Grazia Citterio is the wig designer, costume designer and constructor. Tiziano Marcolegio is the technical director and stage manager; Piero Corbella is the general manager; Francesca Rinaldi is the production assistant. Veronica Lattuada and Michela Mantegazza are the apprentice puppeteers. Produced by Associazione Grupporiani.

For the recording of the English text, Nadia Boaretto is the translator and Laura Pasetti is the vocal director, with voices performed by Isaac Allen, Freddie Bang, Michael Blair, William Davies, Danielle Farrow, Jay Graham, Daniel Hird and Laura Pasetti. Chiara Carbone & Chiara Benzoni are interns.

For the musical recording, Danilo Lorenzini is the composer and musician; Daniele Sozzani Desperati is the Music Director; Paolo Sportelli is the recorded music sound engineer; Donatella Amalia Lorenzini is the soloist; Riccardo Acciarino, Angelo Borroni, Luca Esposito, Daniele Moretto, Ezio Rovetta, Marcella Schiavelli, Chiara Scucces and Luca Volonté are the musicians.

Learn more about TREASURE ISLAND at NewVictory.org.

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