Top Notes 
Mandarin orange zest
Passion fruit
Sicilian lemon
Heart Notes 
Queen-of-the-night
Silver birch
Omani frankincense
Patchouli
Base Notes 
Oud
Ivy
Rose honey
Gold
726 Reviews
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Gold
Top Review
14
...and it is no drama
A perfumistic colossal painting, much like Verdi's opera, is not what this scent is for me personally. I expected more passionate force, but initially received only a delicate sensation of light citrus, not an overwhelming attack, but rather a conventionally appearing introduction. Soon, the composition becomes more exciting. Sage and vetiver take over. These two fit well with the already hinted background, although they do not represent a monumental pose from a stylistic perspective, which I would have expected from a perfume named Othello, but rather a calm, lyrical narration.
Verdi's opera thrives on great contrasts: passion versus delicacy, monumental versus lyrical. This contrast is not captured in the perfume.
Othello by Silvana Casoli is an excellent scent, yet it lacks, in my opinion, the wild substance that would characterize an Othello. Only the base is somewhat more interesting than the rest, with plenty of incense, fine sprinkles of oud, and light honey. Everything remains well-groomed and calm, yes, beautiful! Unfortunately, there is also no wildness or stylized malice incorporated into the scent here, as the line already hinted at in the top note is maintained. No outburst, no waves of passion. No weapon, no resistance against Jago, the truly evil character in the story! On stage, Othello often ends up stabbing himself in the belly with a dagger in most productions.
The Othello perfume, on the other hand, comes across as very unspectacular. It has no force but seems to have been composed with the effortless routine of an experienced perfumer. It partly appears somewhat gray-in-gray. While it is intelligently crafted, it somehow feels too little sinister or shocking.
Whether a perfume company would do well to olfactorily implement all classic operas at all costs is a question I often ask myself with creations like Othello. By starting so well-groomed, conventionally-classical, the scent opens up a great height of expectation. However, this is not sufficiently utilized as the journey progresses. As a black outsider, Othello is skillfully manipulated by Jago. One feels none of this tragedy in the scent.
Perhaps a perfume cannot reflect the depth of the music at all. Perhaps it should not refer to either Shakespeare or Verdi. Perhaps it should simply be called No. 38. Or No. 3. Or somehow, somehow not so terribly programmatic.
Verdi's opera thrives on great contrasts: passion versus delicacy, monumental versus lyrical. This contrast is not captured in the perfume.
Othello by Silvana Casoli is an excellent scent, yet it lacks, in my opinion, the wild substance that would characterize an Othello. Only the base is somewhat more interesting than the rest, with plenty of incense, fine sprinkles of oud, and light honey. Everything remains well-groomed and calm, yes, beautiful! Unfortunately, there is also no wildness or stylized malice incorporated into the scent here, as the line already hinted at in the top note is maintained. No outburst, no waves of passion. No weapon, no resistance against Jago, the truly evil character in the story! On stage, Othello often ends up stabbing himself in the belly with a dagger in most productions.
The Othello perfume, on the other hand, comes across as very unspectacular. It has no force but seems to have been composed with the effortless routine of an experienced perfumer. It partly appears somewhat gray-in-gray. While it is intelligently crafted, it somehow feels too little sinister or shocking.
Whether a perfume company would do well to olfactorily implement all classic operas at all costs is a question I often ask myself with creations like Othello. By starting so well-groomed, conventionally-classical, the scent opens up a great height of expectation. However, this is not sufficiently utilized as the journey progresses. As a black outsider, Othello is skillfully manipulated by Jago. One feels none of this tragedy in the scent.
Perhaps a perfume cannot reflect the depth of the music at all. Perhaps it should not refer to either Shakespeare or Verdi. Perhaps it should simply be called No. 38. Or No. 3. Or somehow, somehow not so terribly programmatic.
8 Comments
Yatagan
Kollerl
Mörderbiene
Ergoproxy
Mefunx
Troemmer
MichH
Gerdi
Torfdoen
NikEy
