"Mese Mariano" resembles Puccini's "Suor Angelica" (which had its premiere eight years later), though with a softer edge, and without a visible villain.
In a slightly more traditional vein, Spoleto presented a double bill of obscure verismo one-acts, Umberto Giordano's "Mese Mariano" (1910) and Giacomo Puccini's first opera, "Le Villi" (1884).
Director Stefano Vizioli, set designer Neil Patel, costume designer Roberta Guidi di Bagno and lighting designer Matt Frey created a coherent look for the two pieces: The plain but appealing 1930s orphanage for "Mese Mariano" included a large blow-up of a child's drawing.