Sopranos - Castelluccio Gets Into Character

Former SOPRANOS star FEDERICO CASTELLUCCIO is taking method acting to a new level ahead of his role as CARVAGGIO in a new play - he is creating replicas of the legendary artist's works.

The 44-year-old Italian, who played mob soldier Furio in the hit TV show, will play Michaelangelo Merisi de Carvaggio in a production that opens in New York in October (08).

Castelluccio is an accomplished artist himself, having studied at Manhattan's School of Visual Arts - and is preparing to take on the 17th century artist by recreating classics, such as Carvaggio's David With the Head of Goliath.

He reveals to the New York Daily News, "Just as Carvaggio did. I've incorporated my self-portrait into the faces of David and Goliath."