In lieu of offering a straightforward presentation of the seminal Verdi opera La Traviata, this documentary cross-sections that epic to analyze the content, background, history, and cultural significance of the work. The program begins with the dramatic basis for the opera - Alexandre Dumas's 1848 novel La dame aux camélias -and discusses how Verdi's creation, like the Dumas work that inspired and defined it, made history with its scandalous tale of a courtesan who broke the rules of bourgeois society in order to achieve lasting happiness and personal fulfillment. The program then touches on the opera's (related) status as the first operatic work in history to be based on a drama of morals, before moving into a discussion of the composer's intentions and the musical content of the opus. The documentary features clips from productions of La Traviata by such notables as Peter Hall and Francesca Zambello, with arias performed by luminaries including Angela Gheorghiu, Carla Basto and Marie McLaughlin. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi