Projects
Projects initiated and directed by Filomena
Concert in F
A musical picture of the uniqueness of the femaLe voice
A new international production celebrating the life and work of Italian female iconic artists, from theatre legend Franca Rame to queer feminist author Michela Murgia and singer Maria Carta.
Blending jazz with spoken word, this new piece by Theatralia has been created in partnership with The Playground Theatre, one of London’s most acclaimed development spaces.
Devised and Directed by Filomena Campus in collaboration with theatre director Anthony Biggs | Original compositions and arrangements by Steve Lodder
SirenSong
Filomena Campus Quartet with Steve Lodder, Charlie Pyne, rod yOUNGS‘Sirens’ song’ is the musical picture of the uniqueness of the voice, irresistibly powerful, dangerously seducing and giving pleasure to whoever hears it. Inspired by Italian philosopher Adriana Cavarero, Campus draws you into the dreamy fairy world of Shakespearean Queen Mab, and the irresistible Sirens’ voices in Homer’s Odyssey, the mythical Janas creatures of Sardinian folk tales, linking her Mediterranean roots to contemporary jazz with an electronic twist. Irony resonates in the song ‘Queen of Clowns’, a tribute to the Italian theatre artist Franca Rame.
Campus presents new compositions written with pianist Steve Lodder and arrangements of tunes that have been part of her repertoire and international collaborations. With Rod Youngs on drums and Charlie Pyne on double bass, lending a backing voice with her sophisticated vocal harmonies and improvisations. The quartet will take you on a passionate journey where music and improvisation intertwine with spoken word, poetry, and comic sketches.
To be Franca. Essere Franca.
Filomena Campus and Steve Lodder
A concert/performance with original compositions by Campus and pianist Steve Lodder, shining a light on the life and work of Italian performer, author, activist, and theatre-maker Franca Rame (1929-2013). The concert is interspersed with improvisations, poems, extracts from comic monologues by Franca Rame and Dario Fo, and new arrangements of some of their popular tunes. This project is part of Campus' research on Rame at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. In collaboration with Fondazione Fo Rame.
MONK Misterioso.
A Journey into the Silence of Thelonious Monk
a homage to thelonious monk
Directed by Filomena, Monk Misterioso: A Journey into the Silence of Thelonious Monk features award-winning vocalist Cleveland Watkiss and pianist Pat Thomas both embodying the great jazz pianist, joined by Orphy Robinson (vibes), Dudley Phillips (double bass), Mark Mondesir (drums), MD Rowland Sutherland (flute) and Filomena Campus (vocals and spoken word). Projected artwork by SDNA.
Featuring a script by the renowned Italian writer Stefano Benni, and featuring an All-Star band the show explores jazz legend Thelonious Monk’s extraordinary seven-year creative and personal silence in response to McCarthyism and to the struggle with mental illness at the end of his life. A newly revised version of the show, sponsored by the ACE, has toured the UK in the Autumn 2017 on the occasion of Monk's 100th year anniversary of his birth, with a sold out show at the London Jazz Festival. New tour dates coming soon.
Jester of Jazz
CLOWNESQUE VOCALS
Inspired by characters of Commedia dell’ Arte and Theatre of the Absurd, Filomena Campus explores in this jazz project the versatile role of a jazz singer in a playful, ironic way. Pure jazz is interspersed with surreal and theatrical interventions and short poems. The music is written by Steve Lodder and Dudley Phillips with lyrics by Filomena Campus, who marks her strong connection to Literature Nobel Prize winners Dario Fo and Franca Rame with Jester of Jazz..
Theatralia Jazz Festival
an encounter between two countries
The Theatralia Jazz Festival - formerly known as My Jazz Islands - was created by Filomena with the aim to unite her Sardinian roots with British and Italian jazz styles. Under her artistic directorship the festival has attracted since 2013 a range of top international talents, numbering jazz musician Paolo Fresu, saxophonist Jean Toussaint, vocalist Cleveland Watkiss, pianist and accordionist Antonello Salis, Italian author Stefano Benni and Campus' all-female group the 4Njanas amongst those who have been featured artists. Alongside musical performances, Theatralia Jazz Festival's programmes include extra events such as talks, workshops and discussion panels. Theatralia Jazz Festival at London PizzaExpress Jazz Club Soho in November 2020.
Scaramouche
Filomena Campus & Giorgio serci feat. keld ensemble
A “beautiful atmospheric duo” is how Jazz FM described the project by Filomena Campus and guitarist Giorgio Serci: Scaramouche.
Sounds of the mediterranean meet rhythms of Brazil and Baroque arpeggios. Recorded in 2015, the music by Serci and Campus' lyrics get a mellifluous layer when the duo present them live on stage accompanied by the strings of the Keld Ensemble.
Italy vs. England
POETIC SATIRE
England vs. Italy is a production based on a comparative text by one of Italy's most prominent writers, Stefano Benni, set on music by Steve Lodder and Dudley Philips. Including a new version of 'God save the Queen', the project has an inviting satirical edge.
Credevo Che - Italian Tour 2019
performance aBOUT domestic violence
A theatrical performance of spoken word and music created by Simonetta Agnello Hornby and Filomena Campus about domestic violence, based on true stories.
Uno spettacolo sulla violenza domestica, di Simonetta Agnello Hornby e Filomena Campus, regia di Daniele De Plano con la collaborazione di Filomena Campus. Produzione Feltrinelli.
