‘Festival dei Due Mondi’ Inspires in Spoleto, Italy
The Festival of the Two Worlds celebrates its 60th edition this year in the Summer of 2017. The festival takes place from June 30 to July 16 in Spoleto, Italy. It is a celebration of summer music, opera and dance.
The idea behind the “two worlds” part of the name came from founder Gian Carlo Menotti. He had hoped that the festival would be a juxtaposition between American and European culture. This year’s exhibition is in keeping with the festival’s original character and international prestige. It is filled with over 90 titles and more than 170 curtain openings with dance, music, theater and special events.
The festival begins on June 30 with Don Giovanni by Mozart in the Teatro Nuovo Gian Carlo Menotti at 19:30. The first Saturday, July 2, showcases pieces by the phenomenal Amedeo Modigliani. The concert scheduled for July 8 is unusual. In Piazza Duomo, the Scripted Orkestra Henrik Schwarz is accompanied by Rome Symphony Orchestra to create an unexpected pairing of electronic and classical music.
A symphony of Chinese dance, modern ballet, and elements of Kung Fu come together for a performance on July 14-15. The show, “11 Warriors,” was created by Beijing company Jackie Chan’s Long Yun Kung Fu Troupe with a perfect balance of dancers and athletes.
On the final evening of the festival on July 16, the Maestro Riccardo Muti conducts the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra that he created in 2004. It is a group of remarkably talented young musicians that were chosen by an international committee of more than 600 instrumentalists from all over Italy.
The art director of the Spoleto Festival, Giorgio Ferrara, has strong feelings towards the festival and the way it should be done year after year:
“In the multiplication of worlds and new people, echoes from the ancient depths of the past still young, the lure of Beauty, Intelligence and Art. That is also the commandment not to waver in their defense.”
-Gracie DiFazio
