On March 25, 1300, an astonishing journey that has shaped the history of Italian literature began. It is the voyage that Dante takes in the Divina Commedia: he falls to the underworld, climbs the mountain of purgatory, and ultimately ascends to the Empyrean. Every year, people commemorate Dantedì (Dante’s Day) to honour the genius who believed in the Italian language even before Italy’s unification. Verona, which hosted the poet for seven years and is known as a Dante city, is also planning a series of events to honour the greatest poet.
The events that the Civic Museums of Verona and the Municipal Libraries organize for Dantedì.
Starting at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 23, there will be a guided tour of the places that hosted the greatest poet of all time during his exile. The route, which will take visitors by the Arche Scaligere and travel from Piazza dei Signori to the House of Romeo, will also highlight the roles of three female characters: Cunizza from Romano, Beatrice, and Francesca from Rimini, this one to Shakespeare’s Juliet. The appointment will be repeated at 11 a.m. the following day. Additionally, a public meeting with a documentary and bibliographic display titled “Dante and His Descendants in Verona: Places and History in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries” will take place on Saturday, March 23. The gathering will be at the Verona State Archives at 10:30 a.m.
An exhibition of manuscripts from the Verona Civic Library titled “The Commedia, between the 15th and 16th centuries” will also take place from Monday, March 25 to April 13. Admission is free on Mondays from 2 to 7 p.m. and Tuesdays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. The Centro Scaligero degli Studi Danteschi will also hold a public meeting on Monday at 3:30 p.m. The primary topics will be two: In Search of the Earthly Paradise with Lino Pertile from Harvard University, and The “Sacred” in Dante and Gaudi with Albertina Cortese from the Scaliger Center of Dantesque Studies.
The final event will take place on Wednesday, March 27 at 5 p.m. There will be a reading followed by a screening of The Divine Comedy for Children (Cantos V and VI), with drawings and accompaniment by actor and dramatist Giovanna Scardoni.
