Sott'acqua: racconto

In a glittering but financially strained aristocratic salon, the young Count Eriprando pursues the sharp‑tongued Contessa Elisa with a mixture of devotion and anxiety. Their exchanges are peppered with playful promises and barely concealed jealousy, while the Count’s modest hopes hinge on a job with the railway that might restore his standing. Elisa, ever the consummate hostess, juggles endless domestic demands—managing staff, repairing garments, and keeping up appearances despite a dwindling income—yet she never lets her own vulnerabilities show.

Their flirtations lead to a whispered agreement to meet at the railway station, a setting that hints at both opportunity and uncertainty. As the evening slips toward midnight, the couple’s banter swells with a restless energy, suggesting that love, ambition, and the pressure of keeping up with society will soon test the limits of their fragile arrangement. Listeners will be drawn into this delicate dance of desire and duty, set against the backdrop of late‑19th‑century Italian nobility.