A veritable “sky of words,” with verses by Italo Calvin, will welcome the second edition of “Ragusa Behind the Curtain,” the biennial festival dedicated to the crafts of theater and art, to Ibla from Thursday.
In a totally new and totally artistic guise Ragusa Ibla will welcome from this Thursday, Sept. 28, the second edition of “Ragusa Behind the Curtain,” the biennial festival dedicated to the crafts of art and theater, conceived by Vicky DiQuattro. A sky covered with the verses of Italo Calvino, whose birth centenary falls this year, will characterize some of the Baroque district’s most characteristic streets and roads. Like an open-air laboratory, a rich and fascinating program will unfold between two unmissable routes dotted with talks, workshops, meetings and performances, as well as guided tours, exhibitions and tastings. The festival is promoted by the “Donnafugata 2000” association with funding from the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, support from the Sicilian Region’s Department of Tourism and Entertainment, the Libero Consorzio Comunale of Ragusa, the Municipality of Ragusa and Siae, sponsorship from the Ministry of Education and the merit Regional School Office for Sicily, Bapr. The atmosphere of the city will be magical, unique, evocative. Ragusa Ibla will be lit up with art and dressed in words. The installation “The Secret City. Luci d’artista” will unravel between Corso XXV Aprile, Via Orfanotrofio and Via Conte Cabrera, a tribute to the great Italo Calvino, designed by contemporary artist Paolo Amico and curated by Costanza Casali. Unveiled in recent months in Ivrea, Italian Book Capital 2022, the installation has been reimagined for the city Ragusa, and phrases from “The Invisible Cities” will shine illuminating the heart of the city. Through a special technique, the works will emit a fascinating luminous effect that, without energy impact, with a view to environmental sustainability combined with cultural dissemination, makes the installation usable by all who happen to walk the streets of Ragusa Ibla’s historic center. This was done by employing the mastery of deceiving the observer, dear to artist Paolo Amico, known for his use of ballpoint pens in creating nocturnal cityscapes and for his skill in the use of artificial light through the creation of “neon.” Among the many details narrated in Italo Calvino’s various cities, it was possible to recognize similarities with the Secret City; with this in mind, the phrases were chosen to bring this project to life, imagining that Calvino had come to our cities and found them so beautiful that he had wanted to keep them, in fact, secret. Well, the chosen phrases, which Calvino had quoted in the novel “Invisible Cities,” have the power to also describe the city of Ragusa, which in its own right can be another “Secret City.” The festival opens on Thursday, Sept. 28, at 6 p.m. with speeches by Regional Councillor for Tourism and Performances, Elvira Amata, Ragusa Mayor Peppe Cassì, Municipal Councillor for Historical Centers, Giovanni Gurrieri, commissioner of the Libero Consorzio dei Comuni Iblei, Patrizia Valenti, the director of the Regional School Office – Ragusa territorial ambit, Viviana Assenza, artistic directors Vicky and Costanza DiQuattro, cultural consultant Paolo Verri and organizational consultant Danila Confalonieri. Journalist Salvatore Cannata will moderate. The event, which will run until Oct. 8, fully involves the city by posing itself on the one hand as a cultural ferment and on the other as an engine for joint cultural actions, thanks to the connections also created with the associations Ragusa Is, A.O.G. Foto Trekking and Novum 1693, the Cathedral of St. George, the Ibleo University Consortium, the Structure of Special Education of Ragusa – Faculty of Languages of Ragusa, and the Conversation Circle. Fully involved is also the school world. For this edition ample space for secondary school students with specific focuses and meeting with artists. The full festival program is available online at www.teatrodonnafugata.it and on all social channels. Also supporting the festival are various private supporters such as main sponsors Gruppo Cappadona, Randstad, Regran, ST Sergio Tumino, and sponsors Marina Iblea, Reale Mutua |Cappello and Battaglia Assicurazioni, Argo Software, Rosso di Sicilia, Coop Gruppo Radenza, Valle dell’Acate, Ottica Spoto, Ragusa Is, Ibla Presente and Futuro
September 26, 2023
Activities carried out under the Rural Development Program 2014-2020 – Measure 19 “Support for leading local development,” submeasure 19.2 P.O. 2/2020
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