Writer, poet, essayist and translator Vittorio Sermonti is hugely popular in Italy, thanks in part to his insightful commentary on Dante’s Divine Comedy, but even more because of the dramatic readings of Dante he’s done in Italy’s most impressive historic monuments over the course of the past 15 years.
His readings of the Inferno, the Purgatorio, and the Paradiso in places like the Pantheon in Rome, the Cenacolo di Santa Croce in Florence, the Basilica di Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, and the Church of San Francesco in Ravenna have attracted more than 150,000 listeners.
Now, in association with Telecom Progetto Italia, Sermonti is on stage at Rome’s Capitoline Museums, helping Romans get back in touch with the very earliest history of their city, by reading his own translation the Aeneid to an enthusiastic audience.
The Aeneid, a Latin epic written by Virgil in the 1st century BC, tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Roman people.
Sermonti’s readings of the 12 books of the epic is being held in the Exedra of Marcus Aurelius, a new addition to the Capitoline Museums. The readings began on September 18th and will take place every night at 9:00pm (except Sundays and Mondays) until October 19th.
Can’t make it every night? Not in Rome but wish you could attend? Video recordings of each evening’s readings are available on the Telecom Progetto Italia site.
Frazz cartoon by Jef Mallett.
An Italian publishing house, Laterza, is currently sponsoring a series of open-air public history lessons given by some of Italy’s leading scholars and held in the context of Rome’s most famous landmarks. Only 1,000 seats are available for each of the lessons, although maxiscreens have been set up in the street for those who don’t manage to get a seat.
On Friday 28 September, crowds gathered in Rome’s beautiful Piazza del Campidoglio to hear Luciano Canfora give a lecture titled, “The Senators.” His hour and 1/2 contribution to the edification of modern Romans was followed up lectures by Alessandro Portelli on the bombing of San Lorenzo and Antonio Forcellino on Michelangelo.
Saturday 29 September saw enthusiastic listeners clamoring to hear another series of lectures, this time given in front of the Colosseum. Superstar archaeologist, Andrea Carandini, spoke about ancient imperial palaces ranging from those of the Roman kings to those of the emperors. He was followed by Andrea Giardini who spoke on gladiators and Giovanni Brizzi who presented a lecture on the Roman army.
Tonight, Sunday 30 September, the lecture series moves to Castel Sant’Angelo, where audiences will be treated to a talk on the Jewish Ghetto given by Anna Foa, another on multiethnic Rome by Alessandro Barbero, and a final presentation on the construction of Saint Peter’s Basilica by Antonio Pinelli.
A similar lecture series held in 2006 was a surprise hit, proving that Romans are truly engaged and interested in their history. Professors gave public lessons at the Auditorium-Parco della Musica on Sunday mornings between October and March. Up to 5,000 people queued in the cold for the 1,200 tickets available for each of the lessons, each of which focused on a single crucial day in the history of the city. For those unable to hear the lectures (or those who simply want to relive them), the 2006 presentations are available for download on Apple’s iTunes and on the website of the organizing publishing house, Laterza. About 355,000 people have already downloaded parts of the 2006 lecture series.
