Program Notes
Where Primo Amore evokes the immeasurable joy one experiences when a dream is born, Cinque Fasi (Five Stages) embodies the soul-crushing heartbreak that occurs when that dream is forcibly ripped away.

We may try to deny the undeniable. We may take turns raging against and pleading with the universe. We may cry our eyes out in hopes that reality itself will notice and take pity on us. Whatever form our grief takes, we employ these defense mechanisms to protect ourselves not only from the pain of the loss, but from the terrible truth the loss represents.  When this dream was alive it empowered us to run through walls, to walk through fire and endure whatever other trials it took to achieve. To accept that this dream is truly dead also means accepting that there never was a light at the end of the tunnel, and that this dismal existence may be all there ever will be. It also means that despite all the emotional, physical and mental resources we expended pursing this dream, the only thing we actually accomplished was making the situation worse than if we had done nothing. Thus, the catch22 is revealed: When your reality is pain, you must have something to fight for or there is no point in living. When fighting for something only leads to more pain there is no point in fighting.

Primo Amore and Cinque Fasi are two sides of the same coin. Each heartbreak we accept makes the next dream harder to believe in, so we do everything we can to keep any shred of hope alive.

Performance Tips
As with Primo Amore, the program notes say it all.

Moments (Music Gestures)
The big fall happens... (m. 1)

The dance of the 4 stages (all but acceptance) begins, interpret as you will. (m. 5)

Hope begins to die and acceptance/surrender starts to take over. (m. 59)

Rock bottom (m. 81)

Refusing to let go of hope you slowly pull your self out of the quagmire. (m. 83)

You do a final, futile dance of the 4 stages in a desperate attempt to find any shred of hope. (m. 93)

There is no escape. Hope is truly dead. You surrender to the darkness. (m. 139)