When a tiny penguin sang Puccini’s impassioned ‘E lucevan le stelle’ in Happy Feet Two

25 March 2025, 13:01

Puccini, a tiny penguin, and one of the most unexpected moments to go down in cinematic history...

Puccini’s ‘E lucevan le stelle’ (And the stars were shining brightly) is one of the most heart-wrenching arias in the Italian tenor repertoire.

Sung by the doomed painter Cavaradossi in the opera Tosca, it’s a farewell to life, filled with longing and despair as he awaits execution.

Have a listen here:

Puccini: Tosca: "E lucevan le stelle" (Live)

It’s not exactly what you’d expect to hear in an animated film about dancing penguins… and yet, Happy Feet Two delivers an unexpectedly operatic moment.

In Happy Feet Two, Erik, the young son of Mumble and Gloria, belts out a reimagined version of Puccini’s aria in a scene that is both charming and surprisingly poignant. His performance, known as Erik’s Opera, is dedicated to Bryan the Beachmaster, a towering elephant seal.

Through the aria, Erik shows his deep admiration for his father, Mumble, and proves that courage and heart matter more than size… and that even a tiny penguin can channel the spirit of a great tenor.

While Puccini’s original aria is a sorrowful farewell, Happy Feet Two transforms it into a moment of triumph – from a prisoner’s lament to a young penguin’s operatic debut.

Watch the tender moment here:

Read more: Evil penguin plays Bach’s Organ Toccata in Wallace and Gromit

Happy Feet 2 Erik's Opera in English and English lyrics!!! HD

The lyrics may be changed, but the music’s raw intensity remains, proving that opera’s power knows no bounds – even in the Antarctic.