Here in Genoa, we started having events dedicated to him back on the 25th of March (date of his passing) but, since in March we had many restrictions due to Covid-19 in place, most events are actually taking place now in Summer since they had been rescheduled.
Last weekend we had a whole day of non-stop events, a real marathon and a homage to his life and works.
They organized group readings, dialogues and conferences with international guests in which scholars, actors, experts in the history of medieval art and musicians performed his works in different locations through the streets of Genoa.
I got to follow one which was a presentation of the Divine Comedy: two scholars discussed the most recent biographical reconstructions of the poet, analyzing Dante's relationship with the historical and cultural reality of the Middle Ages, the need to combine the needs of scientific research and some metaphysical aspects that I had never studied in school.
There were many initiatives planned by our cultural institutions and by the Genoese Librarian circuit.
Although in a smaller scale than expected, due to the pandemic emergency, the highlight of the festival was an on-stage performance of the Inferno by Dante.
The performance had limited seats and it was nearly impossible to get a ticket but I heard it was a great performance in costume.
Another great initiative for the event was also the installation of flowerbeds which tell the story of Hell, Purgatory and Dante's Paradise.
These flowerbeds were created thanks to the collaboration of the Municipality, the Flower association with the help of the trade union associations and thanks to the participation of young artists who created the silhouettes of the characters presented in the representation.
Dante’s silhouette was realized with aromatic plants and local flowers and the second part of the flowerbed represented the three canticles, Dante’s Inferno, Paradiso and Purgatorio, through the three levels that have been created using exclusively plants and flowers.
In the lower part, where Hell was represented, we found the silhouette of Charon the ferryman of the damned on the Acheron River and flowers that, through their colors, were meant to remind people of the flames of the underworld.
Immediately above Hell we found the Purgatory with Dante and Virgil who continue their journey and finally, in the highest part of the flowerbed in light tones, all white and blue, to symbolize Paradise, we could find Dante and his beloved Beatrice.
Unfortunately, as it often happens nowadays during this ongoing pandemic, most events ‘fly under the radar’ and so did this event dedicated to Dante.
It is true that there were no seats available to see the show but the seats available were a few and there was no advertisement whatsoever perhaps because the authorities are worried about possible gatherings and perhaps because the Municipality is disappointed not to be able to offer the community events to which everybody could take part in.
I have seen it happening a lot lately…I happen to walk somewhere and notice an event that wasn’t made public. Even fireworks display (typical shows of this season) are taking place this Summer without any warning because the town halls are concerned about large gatherings of people and, we know it, they are forbidden!
Dante and his works on a flower bed
Dante and his Beatrice
