Allegorie nella Rappresentatione di Anima et di Corpo (1600): testo e immagine

Abstract

The Rappresentatione di Anima et di Corpo by Emilio de' Cavalieri offers yet other interesting aspects for research: the symbolical personifications transmitted by important historical sources of its iconography. In fact the verses of the Rappresentatione, describing all aspects of the personifications, correspond exactly to the allegorical subject treated by painters such as Caravaggio, Tiziano, F. Zuccari, and by interpreters of iconographic symbolism such as C. Ripa, V. Cartari, P. Valeriano. Moreover, they are also related to the literaly tradition of Petrarch, and with the teaching of Father Agostino Manni, included in his Essercitii Spirituali and Ethica Christiana, both directly preceding the Rappresentatione. Historical criticism has ably defined the pedagogical role of this refined 'sermon in music' which is related to the salvation of the soul as pursued by the Roman devotion of the Congregazione filippina dell'Oratorio.
The aim of this article is to draw from iconography suggestions for the staging (scenes, costumes, instrumental ensemble), which could improve the visual aspect of the original performance of the opera. The symbolism, according to a Christian interpretation of Plato, unifies in the Rappresentatione text, music and scene setting. Iconographical research underscores how music, preaching and imagery were all instruments of the Oratorio filippino.