Summer 2024
Three Generations of Creativity Sophia Loren, Carlo Ponti, & Vittorio Ponti
By Claudia Bauer
Read this article in flipbook view
The world knows Sophia Loren as a larger-than-life legend — one of the greatest screen stars of all time, an icon of glamour, and an actress of remarkable range. Her seven-decade career includes the classic drama Two Women and the epic El Cid, the charming romance Marriage Italian Style, and the endearing comedy It Started in Naples.
Loren’s spectacular body of work has garnered an array of international honors, including the Best Actress Academy Award, a Grammy, a César, the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award for her lifetime of outstanding contributions to the arts, and the Knight Grand Cross from her native Italy.
... Loren would say that her greatest accomplishment is the family she raised with her late husband...
But if you asked her, Loren would say that her greatest accomplishment is the family she raised with her late husband, the film producer Carlo Ponti, Sr. And so, family is the theme of Maria Manetti Celebrates La Dolce Vita!, an evening that honors Loren’s life, legend, and art and celebrates the family’s artistic achievements. Held on July 16 at Charles Krug, the evening features a concert by the Los Angeles Virtuosi Orchestra, founded and conducted by Loren’s elder son, Maestro Carlo Ponti (Ponti’s younger brother, Edoardo, is a filmmaker in his own right), and stars Carlo’s 16-year-old son Vittorio, an exceptionally talented classical pianist making his Festival debut.
“It is a joy and privilege to return to Festival Napa Valley, especially when the birthday honoree and the featured soloist are so close to my heart,” says Maestro Ponti, who conducted at the Festival’s inaugural season in 2006 and has returned numerous times since. For the concert, Vittorio will play the glittering piano solo in Johann Sebastian Bach’s Keyboard Concerto No. 1 in D. “I look forward to sharing the passion and enthusiasm with which Vittorio performs, and the pride and emotion I feel as a father by witnessing this dedication and talent.” The program also includes Mozart’s Divertimento K. 136 and Dvořák’s Nocturne.
Loren and her husband cultivated those qualities of character while immersing their children in the arts. “I have fond memories of sitting in our apartment’s living room in Paris, where my family and I were living when I was a young boy, and listening to Beethoven and Tchaikovsky with my parents and brother, all ardent classical music fans,” Maestro Ponti recalls. “They shaped our aspirations by instilling in us the importance of dedication, passion, and commitment.”
“They shaped our aspirations by instilling in us the importance of dedication, passion, and commitment.” ~Carlo Ponti
While Maestro Ponti’s parents were united in encouraging him to pursue conducting as a career, their responses to his performances were diametrically opposed, with endearing results. “The larger the orchestra, the prouder and more exhilarated my father felt, and the more anxious my mother was!” he says. “This is all the more humorous as I think that a chamber orchestra can be more challenging to conduct than a larger ensemble, as the musicians’ parts are more exposed and the texture more transparent.”
As Loren and her husband nurtured young Carlo’s love of music, and he, in turn, nurtures Vittorio’s, Maestro Ponti brings music to countless young people through his orchestra. “The excitement of returning to the Festival is all the more significant for me,” he says. “The mission of the Los Angeles Virtuosi Orchestra to foster musical education resonates deeply with Festival Napa Valley’s commitment to enriching the lives of young individuals through performance opportunities.”
While three generations of the Ponti family have devoted themselves to the performing arts, Maestro Ponti knows that the impact of arts education reaches far beyond the stage. “It is a resource that can not only help young people find their calling,” he says, “but also teaches them skills and promotes qualities that can enrich their lives, regardless of what path they later choose.” That ripple effect is just one more of the enduring legacies of Sophia Loren’s remarkable life and peerless legacy.
Maria Manetti Celebrates La Dolce Vita!
in honor of Sophia Loren featuring Vittorio Ponti and Carlo Ponti
Tuesday, July 16 at 6:30pm
Festival Napa Valley Stage at Charles Krug
THE FILMS OF SOPHIA LOREN
Monday, July 8 at 6:30pm
CIA at Copia Ecolab Theatre, Napa
Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow (dir. Vittorio De Sica, 1963) with Marcello Mastroianni
Tuesday, July 9 at 6:30pm
Jarvis Conservatory, Napa
It Started in Naples (dir. Melville Shavelson, 1960) with Clark Gable
Wednesday, July 10 at 6:30pm
Jarvis Conservatory, Napa
Marriage Italian Style (dir. Vittorio De Sica, 1964) with Marcello Mastroianni