Abstract
ABSTRACTThis essay (and the accompanying video-essay) analyses the vocal and bodily performances of Anna Magnani and Sophia Loren across a series of scenes from four films – Campo de’ fiori (Mario Bonnard, 1943), L’oro di Napoli (Vittorio De Sica, 1954), Pane, amore e … (Dino Risi, 1955) and Ieri, oggi, domani (Vittorio De Sica, 1963) – in which both actresses play street traders. The characters played by Magnani and Loren in these films (and numerous others) have been variously described as popolane. I begin by considering how, in the context of Italian star studies, the popolana has typically come to be understood as a lower-class woman of the people. With the help of video-essay analysis, I then move beyond this simplified view of the popolana to consider how specific elements of Magnani and Loren’s performance styles help to bring this archetype to life.
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