Serenata de Amor

(SPIA Media Productions, Inc., USA 15 ©2013)

Director: Benny Sato Ambush
Executive Producer: Claire Andrade-Watkins

A Cape Verdean love story told in song

— A classic and contemporary fairy tale: sweet, beautiful, innocent and forever after —

Serenata de Amor is a period piece, set in the 1940s on the island of Brava, Cape Verde, and is a tribute and homage to the morna of Cape Verde. Brava is the island renowned for legendary composers of the morna, including Eugenio Tavares who is widely considered the Mozart of Cape Verdean music. Serenata de Amor is about unrequited love, the hope of love,

The global, online premiere of Serenata de Amor, a fifteen-minute musical theater/music video launched Sunday, May 12, 2013, 2pm, EST global  through social media sites including Facebook, Vimeo and YouTube.

Serenata de Amor is a Cape Verdean love story told in song.  A period piece, set in the 1940s on the island of Brava, Cape Verde, Serenata de Amor is also a tribute and homage to the morna of Cape Verde.  Brava is renowned for legendary composers of the morna, including Eugenio Tavares widely considered the Mozart of Cape Verdean music.  

The story revolves around a young man arriving at a villa in Brava with a group of musicians to serenade the woman of his dreams.  The serenade was a part of the tradition of courtship and romance in Brava, with elaborate protocol and etiquette, but  often fraught with peril because of class divisions. 

 Serenata de Amor is based on an original screenplay, and  was shot on a sound stage to a pre-recorded soundtrack.  It is a classic and contemporary fairy tale: sweet, beautiful, innocent and forever after.  All the  musicians who play the roles in Serenata, are distinguished heirs of the musical legacy of Cape Verde.  The all volunteer production team for this project is the result of a unique collaboration between Emerson faculty, students, staff, crew, alumni, Cape Verdean musicians, supporting actors, and members of the Cape Verdean community.    

It was shot at a soundstage at Emerson College’s Paramount Center.  A pre-recorded soundtrack was produced at the College’s student-run radio station WERS 88.9FM. The link went live from the Cape Verdean Progressive Center, 329 Grosvenor Ave., East Providence, Rhode Island.

Serenata de Amor is about unrequited love, the hope of love, forbidden love, and the triumph of love. Told in song, the story revolves around a young man arriving at a villa in Brava with a group of musicians to serenade the woman of his dreams.  The serenade was a part of the tradition of courtship and romance in Brava, with elaborate protocol and etiquette, but  often fraught with peril because of class divisions.

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Serenata de Amor, un film d’époque se déroulant dans les années 1940 sur l’île de Brava, au Cap-Vert, est un hommage à la morna du Cap-Vert. Brava est renommée pour ses compositeurs légendaires de la morna, comme Eugenio Tavares, considéré comme le Mozart de la musique capverdienne.

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Serenata de Amor, c’est l’amour non partagé, de l’espoir de l’amour, de l’amour interdit, et le triomphe de l’amour. Racontée en chanson, l’histoire de Serenata met en action un jeune homme qui arrive dans une villa à Brava avec un groupe de musiciens pour chanter une sérénade à la femme de ses rêves. La sérénade fait partie de la tradition de faire la cour et de la romance à Brava, avec un protocole élaboré et de bienséance, souvent périlleux en raison de la division des classes sociales.