Title from title frames

At the Sydney Opera House on 2nd October 1990 Dame Joan Sutherland bade farewell to opera in an emotional performance as Marguerite de Valois in Giacomo Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots. The occasion marked the close of a distinguished singing career spanning 42 years and embracing 50 different roles. Dubbed 'La Stupenda' thirty years ago by an Italian critic, Dame Joan Sutherland and her husband Richard Bonynge talk at length about her distinguished singing career and their life together in opera. The film combines documentary, archival material and performance to present a unique retrospective of those years. Affectionate contributions from some of their close friends and colleagues, including Luciano Pavarotti, Marilyn Horne, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and fellow Australian Sir Sidney Nolan, add to a celebration of Dame Joan's singular talent. A National Interest Program. A Landseer Production for RM Associates and Film Australia in association with Omnibus - BBC Television, The Decca Record Company, Radio Telefis Eireann and RTP. Copyright - 2011 National Film and Sound Archive of Australia. Executive Producer: Neil Mundy, Chris Oliver Producer: Brian Adams Director: Derek Bailey Writer: Derek Bailey DOP/Cinematographer: Barry Noakes, John Christie, Pieter De Vries, Rainer Lanuschny, Martin Ludwig, Paul Cave, Paul Kolsky, Christian Trenker Narrator/Presenter: Humphrey Burton Featured People: Dame Joan Sutherland, Richard Bonynge, Luciano Pavarotti, Norman Ayrton, Franco Zeffirelli, Bernard Levin, Marilyn Horne, Norma Major, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Sir Sidney Nolan, Serge Dansereau, Bob Hawke, Ruthli Ingold

In Process Record

Originally produced by National Film and Sound Archive of Australia in 1991

Mode of access: World Wide Web

In English