After the chaos in Rome yesterday when the Colosseum and the Imperial Fora remained closed for three hours for workers to attend a union meeting, the Italian Government has responded with uncommon rapidity - it's becoming a habit - and the Culture Minister, Dario Franceschini, announced on Twitter this afternoon that museums and archeological sites will now be classified as … [Read more...] about Italy now ranks museums as ‘essential services’ after strike closes the Colosseum
Rome
Rome’s Colosseum to get its floor back
Ecco nelle foto Alinari come i visitatori vedevano e vivevano il Colosseo sino a poco più di un secolo fa. pic.twitter.com/i4w74IYUlB — Dario Franceschini (@dariofrance) November 2, 2014 Last November Italy's Minister for Culture, Dario Franceschini, tweeted about a plan to create a floor for the Colosseum in Rome. The arena had a floor until the 1800s when the lower … [Read more...] about Rome’s Colosseum to get its floor back
Mikhail Baryshnikov helps achieve the dream of Russian poet Josef Brodsky
Nobel prize-winning poet Josef Brodsky and ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov were good friends. Really good friends. Brodsky hated calling Baryshnikov 'Mikhail' or 'Misha' so he called him 'Mysh': mouse! He called himself Josef the Cat, adding in a little miaow afterwards This is how the pair always referred to each each. They met in 1974 in New York where the … [Read more...] about Mikhail Baryshnikov helps achieve the dream of Russian poet Josef Brodsky
Roberto Bolle and Friends from ABT on tour in Italy
In addition to the Roberto Bolle & Friends dates in New York and Shanghai, a new group of friends will join him for his Italian leg of the tour. Roberto Bolle & Friends from the American Ballet Theatre will be at the Politeama Rossetti in Trieste on 19 July; at Rome's Caracalla Baths on 21-22 July; at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa on 24 July, and finishing at … [Read more...] about Roberto Bolle and Friends from ABT on tour in Italy
The Italian Greta Garbo is gone: Rossella Falk dies at 86
Rome, 10 November 1926 – Rome, 5 May 2013 One of the greatest Italian stage actresses has died in Rome at the age of 86. Rossella Falk was a giant among Italian actresses, with a slightly arrogant air and regal poise which set her apart from many of her more earthy colleagues. The label "the Italian Greta Garbo" was well chosen, and even her hairstyle recalled that of the … [Read more...] about The Italian Greta Garbo is gone: Rossella Falk dies at 86
Police helicopters circle overhead as Cecilia Bartoli returns to Rome
Bartoli fans battled their way to Renzo Piano's glorious Auditorium Parco della Musica through security cordons, with police helicopters circling overhead. These precautions were not for the Roman diva's presence, but for the football 'derby' at the Olympic Stadium next door where the two local teams, Lazio and Roma, were playing. The atmosphere in Sala Santa Cecilia was … [Read more...] about Police helicopters circle overhead as Cecilia Bartoli returns to Rome
Boris Bilinsky: costume and set designer for ballet, opera and film and legendary graphic artist
Boris Bilinsky was born in Odessa in 1900, but left Russia in 1920, escaping from the aftermath of the Revolution. He settled in Berlin where he was still able to collaborate with Russian theatres, but in 1923 he moved to Paris and worked with the Studio Albatros, a production company in Montreuil. Albatros had only been set up in 1922, but was soon to produce some of the most … [Read more...] about Boris Bilinsky: costume and set designer for ballet, opera and film and legendary graphic artist
A new ballet company for Italy? Rome’s mayor announces a project for the Italian National Ballet
The Mayor of Rome, Gianni Alemanno, has announced, We are working on a project with Carla Fracci to create a National Ballet Company which can bring the Rome experience to a national level. The 'Rome experience' was the period of ten years that Fracci spent at the helm of the capital's ballet company. Alemanno, who is by default the president of the board of directors of … [Read more...] about A new ballet company for Italy? Rome’s mayor announces a project for the Italian National Ballet
The dance drain: who will save ballet in Italy?
Italians are great dancers, but they don't get much opportunity to demonstrate that in their homeland. The history of ballet is adorned with Italian talent: Giuseppina Bozzacchi was the first Swanhilda in Coppélia; three dazzling stars, Carlotta Grisi, Fanny Cerrito, and Marie Taglioni (also the first Sylphide) were celebrated by Perrot in his Pas de Quattre; Pierina … [Read more...] about The dance drain: who will save ballet in Italy?
Special events banned near Rome tourist icons until 2012
Special events will be banned at Rome's iconic tourist attractions Piazza Navona and the Trevi Fountain until the end of the year because of a rash of recent attacks by vandals. Rome Mayor Gianni Alemanno released a statement on Tuesday saying the decision was taken "to protect the public assets of the city of Rome and in particular the artistic and monumental heritage of … [Read more...] about Special events banned near Rome tourist icons until 2012