Feb. 20 – 23: DANZAINFIERA. Fortezza da Basso. Open Thursday 3 – 8 pm; Friday, Saturday and Sunday 9 am – 8 pm. Admission: 1 day €18, 4 days €45; free for children under 8; €12 for 8 – 10 year olds. The four-day annual event, Danzainfiera, is the hub of all things dance in Florence. The fair brings together more than 20,000 dancers to learn, perform and compete. Dancers from novice to professional can enjoy [...]
Feb. 18 – 22: ANNA MARIA DE’ MEDICI TRIBUTE This month Florence will celebrate the legacy of Anna Maria Luisa de’ Medici by hosting a number of special events in her honor. Before her death on February 18, 1743, she willed her family’s entire collection of art and her estate to the city of Florence, on the premise that they were to never leave the city under any circumstances. Thanks to her generosity [...]
In honor of the 97th anniversary of late Franco Zeffirelli’s birth (1923-2019), the Zeffirelli Foundation museum will offer free admission to residents of Florence metropolitan area with an I.D. on February 12 from 10 am to 6 pm. The displays of Zeffirelli Foundation (piazza San Firenze 5) details the life’s work of the great Italian director and producer, almost year by year, room after room. Growing up in Florence and attending the Accademia [...]
James Conlon returns to lead the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in a program dedicated to the music of the Czech composer, Antonin Dvorak, on February 7. The concert begins with a symphonic poem ‘The Golden Spinning Wheel,’ inspired by the poem of the same name found in Kytice, a collection of folk ballads by Karel Erben. Following this is the popular Symphony No. 9 in E minor ‘From the New World.’ [...]
Raphael’s famous portraits of Angolo Doni and his wife Maddalena Strozzi are part of the Uffizi collection, and on Friday, January 31, their 517th wedding anniversary, the gallery is offering two tickets for the price of one to couples who wish to tour the museum that day. The name of this special initiative, “Festa dei Doni” (Festival of the Gifts), is also a play on last name of the historic pair depicted in [...]
Florence is commemorating the lost souls taken by the Nazis in Florence and sent to concentration camps in 1944, never to return, by commissioning approximately 50 stumbling stones (“pietre di inciampo” in Italian) for the sidewalks. A prologue to the Holocaust Remembrance Day was the placement of a number of square-shaped memorials on city streets throughout the month of January. These plaques, 10 x 10 cm (4 x 4 inches), are the same [...]
As Irish literary legend Oscar Wilde once said “The best way to make children good is to make them happy.” Considering its super fun and child oriented calendar of special events, international projects and creative productions, the upcoming Pitti Immagine Bimbo is sure to bring a smile to the young as well as the young at heart. Held mainly at Florence’s Fortezza da Basso from January 16 to 18, and open only to [...]
This year, there is a new Florence ice rink at the Fortezza da Basso around the “Lago dei Cigni.” The rink, part of the Florence Ice Village, encircles the pond to provide 320 meters (300 yards or 1,000 ft.), the longest track to skate on in Europe. Hours are 10 am – midnight daily through February 28. Entrance is €8 for the first hour of skating, €5 for the second hour; children are [...]
Until Sunday, December 22: GERMAN CHRISTMAS MARKET. Piazza Santa Croce. Open 10 am to 10 pm. The market is special because it not only sells German products, but also provides the opportunity of buying local English products such as teas and china in addition to gift items created by artisans from all over Europe. WHAT CAN I EXPECT FROM THE MARKET? There are stands with ground spices from France; handmade scented and unscented [...]
Two renowned musicians – cellist Mario Brunello and pianist Andrea Lucchesini – will celebrate their 30th year of performances together in addition to a strong friendship with a special concert at Teatro della Pergola on December 16 at 9 pm. The duo will be interpreting late 19th century music, including the Sonata in A Major by César Franck, originally composed for violin and piano, and Chopin’s Sonata op. 65 for cello and piano, [...]