We’re all accustomed to our favorite books being made into movies. From 2015 Oscar nominees like Carol and Room to Sherlock Holmes and Dracula adaptations dating back more than a century, filmmakers ...

VENICE—Luca Salsi glowered and lurched his way around the stage, clutching his hand to his chest as he geared up for his death scene in “Simon Boccanegra,” Verdi’s opera about a pirate who becomes ...