DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

One of the greatest aspects of my work is telling stories that inspire and elevate humanity. While producing an episode on Milan’s hidden treasures for National Geographic Television, I discovered Casa Verdi. I was moved by the residents’ vibrancy; compelled to learn about their lives; and inspired to document their stories. I kept asking myself: Who are these people? What were they like in their prime? What’s their secret to living such a joyful life at the ripe old age of 80 or 90? Why aren’t retirement homes more like this? Is music really medicine for the soul? I knew that someday I would travel back to find the answers. I flew to Milan with my producing partner, Christine La Monte, and received official permission from the Casa Verdi Board to produce this documentary with full access to the home and residents, and spent time following the lives of these distinguished ‘guests’ of Verdi’s. I believe growing up without my biological grandparents or really knowing my biological Italian father has ultimately led me to question aspects about family, life, aging and the elderly. Little did I know that I would end up answering many of those questions in discovering and learning about Casa Verdi in Milan, a distinctive and unique retirement home for aging musicians and artists. When I first entered the home, I eagerly anticipated meeting the residents. Their gentle hands, openness and exuberant smiles made me immediately feel at home. There was so much I wanted to learn from the residents, knowing there was a rich history within the walls of their rooms at Casa Verdi! This magnificent home built by one man, Giuseppe Verdi, I found to be quite remarkable. While I was observing daily music classes at Casa Verdi, an elderly woman in her 100’s, tapped her finger to the sound of a piano playing, while residents in wheel chairs sitting in a large circle were singing notes like they did when they were in their 20’s. I kept on questioning, who are these people? What were their lives like when they were young? What happened to their families? Who survived the holocaust? How did music save them? What can we learn about life from these aging artists? I knew that deep in my heart I had to travel back to Milan to tell this story. Finally, upon hiatus from production, I had some time and money to invest in the development of this documentary. So with personal funds, my producing partner, Christine La Monte and I traveled to Italy to ask permission to create this documentary. We have developed solid relationships with the residents, building trust and now following their lives. Investments have been made by all of us – emotionally, personally and financially – in this quest to find the answers to what it means to live a creative life at an elderly stage of life. How does music therapy stave off depression or Alzheimer’s disease and dementia? What can we learn from this process? Gratefully, we have received the blessings and official permission from the Board of Directors of Casa Verdi to tell this story. The residents are eagerly anticipating the completion of our film, and personally looking forward to sharing their stories through the film with their families and the world. It is my hope that in entertaining the masses, VIVA VERDI! will inspire retirement homes across the world to implement music therapy, and creative arts classes into the elder care system, along with mentoring, which will ultimately create a harmonious encore period of life – putting a spotlight on creativity and music as a source of joy that stimulates and induces good health at every age.

http://www.nalip.org/arc

IndieGogo Campaign launched to raise funds for phase II of production. A total of 29,190.00 was successfully raised.

Received grant from Awesome Without Borders — Thank you Ruth Ann Harnisch and the Awesome Foundation team!

I was on assignment for National Geographic Television producing an episode on Milan’s hidden treasures. We included CASA VERDI, a retirement home for aging musicians where many of the residents are legendary artists of our time, having performed at La Scala, The Royal Opera House, The Metropolitan Opera – along with a renowned jazz musician who played with Chet Baker. These aging artists were still hitting notes hard to believe at any age. I was moved by their vibrancy, compelled to learn more about their lives and inspired to document their stories. I kept asking myself, who are these people? What were their lives like when they were in their prime? What is the secret to living such a joyful life at the ripe old ages of 80, 90 and 100. Why aren’t retirement homes like this in the US? I had a number of questions and knew that someday I would travel back to learn more.