Browning Cinema
MFA Students Pick Some Films for Us to Watch
Directed by Federico Fellini
With Balduin Baas, Clara Colosimo, Elizabeth Labi
Not Rated, 70 minutes, DCP
In Italian with English subtitles
With a scheduled introduction by Miharu Yano!
Abounding with Fellini's trademark rich imagery and expressive style, Orchestra Rehearsal is possibly his most satirical and overtly political film. As well, it marks the final collaboration between Fellini and legendary composer Nino Rota, due to the latter's death in 1979. An allegorical pseudo-documentary, the film depicts an Italian TV crew's visit to a dilapidated auditorium (a converted 13th-century church) to meet an orchestra rehearsing under a tyrannical conductor. The crew interviews the various musicians who each speak lovingly about their chosen instruments; however, as petty squabbles break out amid the different factions of the ensemble, the meeting descends into anarchy and vandalism. A destructive crescendo ensues before the musicians attempt to regroup and play together once more in perfect harmony.
Free for ND, SMC, HC, IUSB, and High School students.
Co-presented by the Creative Writing Department and the Meg and John P. Brogan Endowment for Classic Cinema.
Event Dates
Thursday, October 16, 2025 - 9:30 PM
