Editing The Silent Gondoliers (section)

== Synopsis ==
Luigi is an aspiring gondolier in Venice. Though he is a talented boatman, he is a terrible singer, and people get stomach cramps and migraines just listening to him. As gondoliers have a reputation as the best singers in the world, and customers expect it as part of the service, a tone-deaf gondolier is unacceptable, no matter how skilled he is with his oar..
 
As the story unfolds, his fiancee Laura Lorenzini breaks off her engagement, and marries a 'better suitor'. Though he is an awful singer, Luigi's friends are fond of him and his affable nature. It is agreed that although he cannot be a gondolier, he can work in the Tavern, the Gondoliers' exclusive haunt. But over time he becomes dissatisfied.

Luigi disappears for many years, and is turned away from various singing teachers. Finally Piccoli agrees to teach him, although unbeknown to Luigi, Piccoli has not taught in many years and is deaf. Luigi eventually returns to Venice and sings, but his singing is even worse because it has become more powerful. When a 'killer storm' approaches, everyone is in danger.  When the Church of Souls of Those Who Died for the Sea, the most sacred building to the Gondoliers, is struck by lightning, even the most skilled gondoliers in Venice are too overcome with fear to go out and call for the Great Fireboat of Venice to save their church from fire.

Finally, Luigi manages to reach the Great Fireboat of Venice, which sets out to save the church. The other gondoliers notice that Luigi did not return with the fireboat, and discover him sailing on the turbulent waters of the Grand Canal. Covered by the noise of the storm, Luigi is finally able to realize his dream of singing on the Grand Canal, singing songs from [[Vincenzo Bellini|Bellini]] and all the solos he knows. All the gondoliers witness this and they talk about it all night.

After the storm, the Queen of [[Corsica]] visits. She requests a gondolier to sing for her on her royal boat. One gondolier starts to sing ''[[’O sole mio]]'', but sings terribly to the queen's disgust. It is discovered that all gondoliers have started to sing terribly from that moment on, and so no-one asks them to sing anymore.

Luigi is reinstated as a gondolier, without the requirement to sing. After a long career and happy life, as with all gondoliers when they die, Luigi is set in his black boat and pushed out into the [[Adriatic Sea]].