To mark the 150th anniversary of the birth of Eleonora Duse (3 October 1858), an International Conference on the great actress was held in Venice from 1 to 4 October 2008. On consulting the history of theatre, we find many studies and publications dealing with Eleonora Duse’s artistic production and fascinating life, but she is a figure who still offers numerous stimuli for further study. The Conference thus also explored many of the littleknown aspects of her complex artistic and human personality. In fact in the four days, many new issues, divided into several sections, were tackled: an analysis of her early performances, impressions and descriptions of her influence in the views of contemporary actors, writers and friends; her international performances; her passion for books and reading; her relations with other art forms, such as film, dance, painting and fashion; and, lastly, general considerations on her legacy as an “artist-actress” for new Italian drama. The papers in this book, entitled “Voices and Spirits, Bodies and Writing”, make use of previously unpublished documents, including newly discovered texts on the actress, and provide fresh reflections, fuelled by consulting her scripts, correspondence and photographic images. The book thus highlights and further consolidates the overall historical importance of the figure of Eleonora Duse, moreover it is also an important milestone in the three-year programme dedicated to Eleonora Duse. The programme is supported by the Veneto Region and has been developed through collaboration between the Giorgio Cini Foundation’s Centre for Documentary Research into European Theatre and Opera and the G. Mazzariol Department of History of the Arts and Conservation of Artistic Heritage at Ca’ Foscari University, Venice.