“Museums at Night” is a really interesting initiative funded by the Ministry of Cultural Activities and Heritage, which will take place on Saturday 16^th May and will allow a late night opening of all national museums.

Museums at Night is an event expressly created for anyone who doesn’t have the chance to dedicate time to cultural interests and to visit the amazing exhibitions in the Italian museums during the ordinary opening hours. So, as culture belongs to everyone, the Ministry of Cultural Activities and Heritage decided to support this initiative to allow all the people who for reasons relating to work or economy, don’t have the chance to visit the extraordinary heritage hosted by our museums.

In fact, the night of Saturday 16^th May, all the national museums which will support the initiative, will stay open until 2.00 AM for free (entry allowed until 1.00 AM).

Together with the museums’ visits, there will be also a long series of other events, to encourage citizens to take part to this event.

Actually, this original initiative has its roots in 2005, in

In the wake of the carnival which has just ended, Tuscany keeps on celebrating in good taste. Yes, because a competition between Florence and many of the peculiar municipalities in the surroundings has just begun, and the winner will be who will prepare the most bizarre and tastiest gastronomic masterpieces typical of Tuscany traditions.

Scarperia, in the province of Florence, will be the first, in fact it will host the traditional Wild Boar Festival (Sagra del cinghiale), irreplaceable yearly appointment which this year will take place on February 28^th, March 1^st, 7^th, 8^th 2009.

At the festival you will find

In the next few days, Milan will be the protagonist of a really special exhibition: Gli Ultimi Samurai (The Last Samurai).

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In fact, from February 25^th to June 2^nd, many materials, objects, drawings and accessories all belonging to the legendary world of the Samurai, will be put on display in the halls of the Royal Palace, and they will be very useful to reenact the Edo period of the Japanese history, that is to say the one included between 17^th and 19^th century.

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This exhibition boasts of the primacy to be the first exhibition in Europe entirely dedicated to the Samurais, myth and legend which from time immemorial fascinated the western world. In addition, besides the loans of the collections of eastern art coming from the Sforza Castle, this exhibition will be enriched with the extraordinary presence of

Once again the Venice Biennale presents its extraordinary session dedicated to the Theatre.

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From February 20^th to March 8^th in fact, the 40^th edition of Biennale Theatre will start, a really important event, which every year puts on display in Venice and Mestre some of the most beautiful Italian and foreign theatre operas.

In April, the Biennale Theatre will house the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement award ceremony to Irene Papas, and it will be followed by the performances on stage at Teatro Goldoni and Teatro Toniolo.

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In addition, this year it was decided to let the whole event revolve around

Finally in Venice a big exhibition has been organized, dedicated to one of the most important resources of the city: glass.

Until the 1st of May 2009, you will have the chance to admire about 135 works, never shown before, exposed in the incredible scenery of the Glass Museum of Murano. “Ritrovare il Museo: Murano 1797 – 1859” was an idea started with the aim of increasing the value of the art of glass which gave popularity to Murano in the past, by turning the village into one of the most famous and appreciated places in the world. The event consists of a variety of exhibitions which carefully retrace the history of Murano glass, and giving attention to one peculiar historic moment, which was the fall of the San Marco Republic in 1797 when, due to a variety of incursion by foreign countries, a time of deep economic crisis started and big masters of glass working reacted to it with the use of creativity and deep innovations

Well it’ s true, indeed she’ s not so beautiful, she’ s an ugly and old woman, but the Befana is so nice and kind, and everyone loves to celebrate her! Epiphany in fact, in our country is the funniest moment during Christmas holidays.

Traditions concerning Epiphany are many, and they are different from region to region and from city to city: some of those are really unique and particular. In some Italian cities celebrations have very ancient origins and represent a real event.

In Siena (exactly in Bettolle) for example, the “XXIV Mostra dei Presepi” (“14th Nativity Scene’s Exhibition”) will take place, where each of the 5 quarters of the village sets up its own Presepe in a corner of the old town center, and on 6th January, as every year, the city awards the most beautiful creations.

Still in Tuscany, you can’t absolutely miss the “Cavalcata dei Magi” (“The Magi Ride”) in Florence, the traditional manifestation which every year on the 6th of January goes across the “Paradiso”, that is the area between the Dome and the Baptistery. During this very peculiar event, obviously relative to religious traditions but rich of folkloristic elements, the “Magi” overstep the manifestation’s place riding a horse and bringing gifts, anticipated by a procession of hundreds people among representatives of Calcio Storico, Sbandieratori, Gonfaloni etc.

On the other hand, “Viva la Befana” (“Long live the Befana”) boasts of more than 20 years of traditions. This is a manifestation started in 1986 in Rome, and every 6th of January

In Milan “Il Museo non è una palla” (“The Museum is not a drag”)…no, I’m not making fun of you, this is just the title of the great review of events which the Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci of Milan offers for Christmas.

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Continuously from 20^th December until 6^th January, the museum will turn into a book of history and science, which will have all the answers to all curious people’ questions.

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Of course, the chapters of this book are the numerous initiatives in the works; a rich calendar full of activities, exhibitions and events in fact will lead you in the pursuit of the secrets of important scientific and technological studies and researches.

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The events have been subdivided according to the theme in order to

As always, the city of Venice, with the collaboration of Confartigianato Venezia, organizes the marvelous ‘Natale in Laguna’!

The event, traditionally located in Campo Santo Stefano, will take place from 29th November to 23rd December, when it will turn into a wonderful location for the Venetian Christmas, with the fantastic Christmas market, where you can find all that the rich world of Venetian handicraft is able to make, from Murano glass to the laces, from toys in wood to soaps, from candles to the amazing little handmade statues to put up your Nativity scene.

But the part that from time immemorial draws the attention of the most, especially the foreigners, is

Once a year, on 7th December the city of Milan is proud to celebrate the day dedicated to its patron saint who is Saint Ambrose, called by Milan’s citizens “Sant’Ambrös”!

Saint Ambrose Day has really ancient origins and through the years it has been keeping the affection and the participation of all Milan’s inhabitants, who between the ritual mass of 7th December in the beautiful Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio and the stalls of “Oh bej oh bej” fair, cram the streets of the city to celebrate this great event.

The fair, which dates back to 1288, takes its name from the exclamation of Milan’s children who, between the stalls full of toys and sweets, couldn’t help marveling and shouted “Oh bej oh bej” (that it means “Oh, how nice! How nice!”).

Usually this event, which is a real festival of colours, lights and

At Correr Museum of Venice, an extraordinary exhibition is underway, and it’s dedicated to one of the founding fathers of Italian Futurism, Fortunato Depero. The exhibition’s name is “DEPERO – Opere della collezione Fedrizzi” (“Depero – Works from the Fedrizzi Collection”).

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The exhibition, one of the many ones organized by the Fondazione Musei Civici of Venice on the occasion of the centennial of futurism, will be housed by the Correr Museum until 1^st March 2009. This great event had been made possible thanks to the Fedrizzi family, who agreed to gift the private collection belonging to Giuseppe Fedrizzi as a long-term loan to Fondazione Ca’ Pesaro.

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The event displays about 80 artworks which date back to the period between 1914 and 1956, and are the real proof of Depero’s artistic genius, who succeeded in giving movement to each of his creations with the use of oils, temperas, charcoal drawings and advertising sketches.

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Undisputed forerunner of our way of conceiving advertisement, Depero