With their silken gowns, soft curls and smoky, come-hither eyes, the screen sirens of the 1950s exuded feminine sophistication. Stars like Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford, Jean Harlow and Norma Shearer seduced a nation with a potent, untouchable sensuality.
It is this feminine power that William Farlow, director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s University Opera, hopes to harness in his upcoming production of “Alcina,” set in 1950s Hollywood, in a three-show run that begins this weekend in Music Hall.