Cenere by Febo Mari (1917) is based on a short story by Grazie Deledda and stars Eleonora Duse, our greatest theater actress. Cenere is among the most vivid, profound, and successful examples of the meeting of cinema and literature. It is the only film featuring Duse, therefore is a priceless document of her great art.
The screening of the film is accompanied by a live music score by Allulli Trio: Marcello Allulli (sax), Giovanni Ceccarelli (piano) and Matteo Fraboni (drums). The three musicians, who are group leaders in their own right, have been working together for many years. They met in Rome in the 1990’s and played together in several groups, as Trioakì led by German poli-instrumentalist Aki Montoya and featuring jazz legend Tony Scott. Other collaborations were those with Italian poet Francesca Merloni at her CD Elice, 2007, and with film and performance director Federica Altieri together with (among others) pianist and accordionist Antonello Salis. Marcello, Giovanni, and Matteo played many internationally renowned festivals and concert seasons, including several Italian Cultural Institutes around the world. In December 2014 they performed Cenere at the European Film Festival and at the Italian Cultural Institute in Beirut, in December 2015 at the Sensorium festival, Goa.