“The Garden of the Finzi-Continis” had what its creators call a “difficult birth.” Over a decade in the making, the opera, adapted from Giorgio Bassani’s book of the same name, which Vittorio De Sica made into an Oscar-winning 1970 film, was meant to be a part of the Minnesota Opera’s 2011 and then 2013 season….
This story, initially published in October, 2018, has been republished in honor of Mozart’s 265th birthday on Jan. 27, 2021. The librettist Lorenzo da Ponte — an exiled Jewish-born Venetian who turned to the arts after proving too irreverent for the Church — had a lot in common with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The two shared…
The Unicode Consortium, also known as “the emoji people,” released its list of 65 new icons on Thursday, thrilling at least two groups with their inclusion of what they’re calling the “Italian hand gesture” of pinched fingers and a raised hand. Of course, Italians love it — they use it to signal disagreement. But a…
ROME (Reuters) – Holocaust survivor Liliana Segre has been placed under police protection after she received threats from far-right fanatics, security sources said on Thursday, highlighting concern about rising extremism in Italy. Segre, 89, called last month for the creation of a parliamentary commission to investigate hate, racism and anti-Semitism after she was the subject…
Police in northern Italy detained three men after discovering an air-to-air missile, an arsenal of military weapons and Nazi propaganda during raids on far-right groups, the BBC reported. As part of an on-going investigation of Italian far-right extremist groups, Italian police discovered the stash of military weapons and Nazi paraphernalia on Monday. Eight hundred bullets,…
(JTA) — An Italian couple whose ancestors were forced to hide their faith got married atop the ruins of an ancient synagogue, giving the site its first Jewish wedding in centuries. Roque Pugliese and Ivana Pezzoli tied the knot earlier this week in the presence of about 100 guests, including leaders of Italian Jewry, at the Bova…
Ukraine has become the first country whose president and prime minister are both Jewish — besides Israel, of course. Volodymyr Zelensky, a Jewish Ukrainian actor, was elected president of the country over the weekend and will soon serve with Volodymyr Groysman, who has been prime minister since 2016. It’s an interesting first that brought up the…
Italy: We long to be there. Red stone buildings and gelato; sun-struck days and soaring basilicas. “A Room With a View.” Katharine Hepburn in “Summertime.” Audrey Hepburn, liberated and love struck in “Roman Holiday.” One of the many fascinations of Giorgio Bassani’s “The Novel of Ferrara,” a compendium of six interlinked novels examining the lives…
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