La Traviata

La Traviata is, of course, most famously, the opera that Richard Gere takes Julia Roberts to see in Pretty Woman. But Verdi’s opera also provides a model and parallel to the film’s plot. Parisian courtesan Violetta becomes Los Angeles prostitute Vivian, while her innocent and adoring love-interest Alfredo morphs into Richard Gere’s older (and altogether less innocent) Edward Lewis.Another film that owes a significant debt to La Traviata is Moulin Rouge. Baz Luhrmann’s all-singing, all-dancing tale of a Paris showgirl and her doomed love affair with a penniless young English writer finds more than an echo in Verdi’s opera. Although Luhrmann himself has claimed the myth of Orpheus and Euridice as the film’s inspiration, the parallels between Violetta and Satine – both courtesans, both suffering from consumption, both forced to drive their lovers away with lies – are clear. Cocktail reception begins at 6:30 p.m., and the performance begins at 8:00 p.m. $225. To purchase at ticket, please click here.