The municipality of Povegliano Veronese has the most feminine administration in Italy, with almost 60% of its city council members being women. Of all the year’s initiatives centered on gender equality, Povegliano felt the need to remake the Ipazia Festival. This is a set of events put on by the town government and several organizations inside and beyond the municipality.
The celebration is held in the days leading up to International Women’s Rights Day, which falls on March 8. The title alludes to Ipazia (or Hypatia) of Alexandria, a Greek scholar and philosopher who died at the hands of extremists and who became the symbol of freedom and feminine thinking. The Festival Ipazia begins today, Saturday, March 1, with numerous events and initiatives and concludes on Sunday, March 10, with an intense series of lectures, debates, and art-related moments.
The program of Hypatia in Povegliano
Numerous scheduled activities will also have a logistical impact on different parts of the municipality. On Sunday, March 3, Piazza IV Novembre will be the center of gravity. Here, at 9:30 a.m., there will be the customary meeting with the Women’s Salon, where Monia Cimichella, the vice-mayor of Sona, and Iranian journalist Hana Namdari will be interviewed. The newly renovated municipal library hall will also be a central venue for the appointments. There will be a number of lectures there, the most prominent of which is “Words are Stones: Women, Language, and Identity” on Tuesday, May 5, at 8:30 p.m.
Additionally, Sara Porreca, a linguist and professor of Italian culture at the Accademia di Brera, and Alice Bescapè of the Antigone theater group will participate in a theatrical production. On the weekends, there won’t be a shortage of special openings of the Villa Balladoro, with an art show coordinated by many local artists and the display of a number of books on the topic of the feminine (from the historical archive).
The March 8 celebrations will mark the climax of the festivities, with the Administration paying a symbolic hug of all women to the village’s oldest and youngest women in the morning. On the other side, three local ladies will receive the Ipazia Award in the evening at 8:45 p.m. in the ceremonial hall of Villa Balladoro. Three women who have made significant contributions to the social, labor, cultural, or athletic spheres will receive the prize, which will be chosen by a special committee based on public recommendations.
