Giovanni was born in Naples and came from a poor background. His father was a foundry worker, and his mother a seamstress. Giovanni started out as a street singer. At 22 he made his stage debut in Naples, and lived for a few years the life of a starving artist, traveling around Italy and Portugal and earning very little. His voice grew in power and weight as he aged, and at the age of 29 in Milan he met an opera manager from London who, after hearing him sing, engaged him for a six season contract with the Royal Opera. In London, Giovanni suddenly finds himself very successful – for the first time in his life, he has money, fame and recognition. Whether or not he can survive the allures of success remains to be seen.
Ippolita Celetti
Prima Donna Ippolita Celetti has risen to international fame for the unmatched quality of her lyrical voice. Both her parents were opera singers from Sicily, and she spent her entire life traveling the stages of the world. Despite being of Italian heritage, she was born in Spain and spent most of her youth in New York, where she debuted at 16 years of age. She performed at 18 for the first time in Covent Garden and saw such grand success that she chose London as her base and purchased a house there. Then she went on to conquer the European continent, performing in Paris, Vienna, and St. Petersburg, and becoming an idol. Her voice is known to move tsars, kings, and generals to tears. She is business-savvy and demands extravagant fees. She is at the height of her fame, and it is rumored that she is set to marry a marquess.
Enzo Esposito
Enzo has always felt torn between two versions of himself. French and Italian; serious, dutiful son, and fun-loving artistic soul; normal, and deviant. Brought by his mother to London a few years ago, he does his best to portray himself in the way she expects and is proud of. To that end, he got a job as a telegram messenger, biking around the city to deliver telegrams to a wide variety of individuals. It was through that job that he was introduced to Martin Love, the proprietor of Maggie’s Place, who was quick to offer the handsome young man a place at the brothel. Though it is not the kind of work that Enzo ever imagined himself doing, there is a certain freedom to it that keeps him working there in spite of the danger and the distasteful aspects of it. (The money doesn’t hurt, either.)