Italian postcard by Unione Cinematografica Italiana, series Teodora, no. 1. Photo: Ambrosio Film. Rita Jolivet in Teodora (Leopoldo Carlucci, 1921). Caption: "A portentious prediction foretells Teodora, daughter of Acacios, she will become Empress."
Italian postcard by Unione Cinematografica Italiana, series Teodora, no. 6. Photo: Ambrosio Film. Rita Jolivet in Teodora (Leopoldo Carlucci, 1921). Caption: "Searching for her lovers, Teodora descends to the lowest quarters of the city."
Italian postcard by Unione Cinematografica Italiana, series Teodora, no. 7. Photo: Ambrosio Film. Rita Jolivet in the title role and René Maupré as her lover Andrea in Teodora (Leopoldo Carlucci, 1921). Caption: "In the inebration of a night of love, Andrea imprudently reveals the secret of the conspiracy against the emperor."
A thirst for domination and a desire for luxury
On the island of Cyprus, future emperor Justinian (Ferruccio Biancini) meets a beautiful 'hetera' (Rita Jolivet), who swears she will become empress. She succeeds and in her thirst for domination, she gives away her desire for luxury.
With a mute slave and heavily veiled, she errs the streets of Byzantium in search of occasional affairs. One night she meets the handsome Greek Andrea (René Maupré) and falls in love with him. She tells him she is Myrta, the sister of a scribe.
Unrest rules in the empire because the high taxes are blamed on Teodora's caprices. The magician Tamyris (Marie Belfiore), whose son has been killed by the guards, organises a conspiracy in which centurion Marcellus (Mariano Bottino) and the same Andrea participate.
Teodora finds out about the conspiracy from the unaware Andrea and she kills Marcellus herself when he is about to name Andrea. Andrea still finds out and gathered at the hippodrome of Byzantium he attacks Teodora with infamous insults. She has him arrested and thrown before the lions but Tamyris rescues him.
Meanwhile, Justinian finds out about his wife's double life and considers expelling her. Teodora, therefore, asks Tamyris for a potion that will cause him to forget, but Tamyris instead gives her a deadly potion, which, however, is drunk by Andrea. He dies in Teodora's arms, witnessed by Justinian. The emperor has her strangled to death.
Italian postcard by Unione Cinematografica Italiana, series Teodora, no. 9. Photo: Ambrosio Film. Rita Jolivet and René Maupré in Teodora/Theodora (Leopoldo Carlucci, 1921). The back of the card reads: "When Teodora meets the Greek Andrea she becomes his lover, pretending she is a widow with the name of Mirta." Film historian Vittorio Martinelli wrote that Maupré played the emperor Justinian and Ferruccio Biancini played Andrea, but other sources, including the original intertitles in the existing print, state that René Maupré played Andrea/Andres. Looking at photos of Maupré this seems right.
Italian postcard by Unione Cinematografica Italiana, series Teodora, no. 10. Photo: Ambrosio Film. Scene from Teodora (Leopoldo Carlucci, 1921). Caption: "The quarters of the animals."
Audiences flocking to see the film
American-born British actress of French descent, Rita Jolivet (1885-1962), was already an acclaimed stage actress of the British, American, and international stage when she debuted in film. Noticing Jolivet's performance at the Garrick Theatre in New York, the American distributor and importer of European films George Kleine proposed her to make films in Italy.
Enthusiastic about the Enrico Guazzoni epics and Lyda Borelli's Ma l'amor mion non muore/Love Everlasting (Mario Caserini, 1913), Jolivet went to Turin where she worked for the Ambrosio studio. She returned to the US to play in Cecil B. DeMille's The Unafraid (1915), with House Peters. The film was a huge success and Jolivet acted in another four American films.
After the war, Jolivet returned to Italy to star in a long cherished project about the life of Theodora, Empress of Byzantium, Teodora/Theodora (Leopoldo Carluccio, 1921), based on Victorien Sardou's play, and with enormous, imposing sets by Armando Brasini. To aid the directorial staff, miniatures of all the sets to be constructed were made, allowing the staff to work out the grouping of the thousands of extras and the camera angles and lighting for the scenes.
On stage, Sardou's play 'Théodora' had been a major hit for Sarah Bernhardt. Because of various economical problems and censorship, the production slowly proceeded in 1919 and 1920 and was finally premiered in the US in October 1921. It was a huge succes.
One year after, the success was even bigger in Italy, with audiences flocking to see the film. The critics were enthusiastic both about the film with its gigantic sets and about Jolivet's performance.
Italian postcard by Unione Cinematografica Italiana, series Teodora, no. 12. Photo: Ambrosio Film. Adolfo Trouché as centurion Marcello/Marcellus in Teodora/Theodora (Leopoldo Carlucci, 1921). The - original - intertitles of the existing print of Teodora state that Adolphe Trouché played general Belisarius, but many sources state that he played the centurion Marcellus. Yet, according to the credits of the film print, Marcellus was played by Mariano Bottino. More research is needed.
Czech postcard. Armando Brasini's gigantic set for the Italian silent epic Teodora/Theodora (Leopoldo Carluccio, 1921).
French postcard by L.V. & C, Paris. Photo: Nadar. Sarah Bernhardt as Empress Theodora in Victorien Sardou’s play 'Théodora' (1884).
Sources: Vittorio Martinelli (Le dive del silenzio - Italian), Wikipedia, and IMDb.
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