Cineforum Italiano: Una vita tranquilla (A Quiet Life)

Sunday, March 11, 2012, 4:00 PM

Genre: Drama
Director: Claudio Cupellini
Released: 2010
Duration: 105 min.

In Italian with English subtitles.

A brilliant addition to the new wave of sophisticated Italian crime films that focus more on character than action, A Quiet Life is further complemented by Toni Servillo who delivers a riveting performance as a man hiding a dark secret. This critically acclaimed, slow-burn dramatic thriller from Claudio Cupellini (Lessons in Chocolate) is one of this year's must-see highlights.

Rosario Russo (Toni Servillo) is living near Frankfurt where he runs a restaurant and hotel and has integrated perfectly into the local community with his family. He keeps a low profile, he has changed his name and he speaks German. Life is good, until one day the introverted Diego (Marco D'Amore) and street-smart Edoardo (Francesco Di Leva) turn up at the hotel, looking for a room. Soon their sinister assignment is revealed, dragging Rosario back into the past.

Director Claudio Cupellini has created a tense thriller, moodily shot in grey winter light, edited at a breathless pace with a slick script and sensational soundtrack. But it is the three standout performances, including the ever popular Toni Servillo, that are so compelling in this modern day Greek tragedy.

Event Plan:

• 4:00 pm: Sign in, enjoy complimentary beverages and snacks during the film.
• 4:15 pm: Program begins with introductions and film
• 6:15 pm: The film will be followed by small reception which provides an opportunity to socialize and discuss the film.

Price:

• $8 online with your RSVP at http://www.meetup.com/passatempo/events/51868232/. Advance ticket purchase is the only guarantee of a seat.
• $10 at the door (cash only, no credit/debit card processing)

Letelier Theater in Georgetown3251 Prospect Street NW, Upper Courtyard
Washington, DC 20007
If you have any questions, please call 202-643-1861.

Trailer:

Hidden Gem: A. Litteri Italian Market

Hidden Gem: A. Litteri Italian Market

by Francesca Hemsey

Serving Washington, DC and the surrounding areas since 1926, A. Litteri Inc. is home to a multitude of Italian wines, cheeses, pastas, fresh meats, sauces and even dolci, this hidden gem of the district is located at 517 Morse Street, NE 20002. Do not be fooled by the exterior as A. Litteri is stashed discreetly amidst an array of warehouses and wholesale markets representing other regional cuisines. But within this frenetic environment frequented by restaurant buyers throughout the metropolitan area is an excellent source of fresh Italian products, authentic brands, and pleasant folks. Hours are limited so make sure to plan ahead and arrive midday. Closed on Sundays and Mondays, this venue is sure to be bustling with people. Fresh mozzarella and pastas, decadent cannoli fillings, and a plethora of olive oils and canned items span the shelves. Craving a San Benedetto iced tea or Cento crushed tomatoes? Maybe some Bellino tortellini. Among there other offerings are De Cecco pastas, Balsamic vinegars from Modena, Panettone, and Fiorucci prosciutto, to name but a few. Additionally, order platters to accommodate anywhere from 10 to 150 people for your next special get together. You are sure to leave contented by your purchases and anxious for the hearty meal a la Litteri to come. Buon appetito!

Italian Singer-Songwriter, Patrizio Buanne CiaoDC Interview

CiaoDC.com chats to Neapolitan singer-songwriter, Patrizio Buanne about his latest cd, Patrizio; his upcoming performance at Wolf Trap; his journey to stardom and the influences that continue to inspire his talent. Listen to this intimate chat with CiaoDC.com Publisher, Alyssa Ciccone and artist Patrizio Buanne.

Congratulations to CiaoDC.com subscriber, Rocco Marano, he is the winner of the Patrizio Buanne Package: a signed cd and two (2) tickets to see Patrizio Buanne at the Barnes at Wolf Trap on Thursday, February 23, 2012. Tickets still available here.

Out and About: CiaoDC's Mid-Month Update

Out and About:

CiaoDC's Mid-Month Update

Check out these events now through the end of February, and check back as new happenings are added.  Those that live outside of D.C. are in for a special treat in this round-up.

Feb 18th  Carnevale at Casa Italiana:  The Lucchessi Nel Mondo celebrate this ancient tradition in style tomorrow night.  Cocktail hour will be from 6-7 PM, with hors d'oeuvres and cash bar, followed by dinner at 7 pm, and dancing and entertainment for the whole family from 8-10 PM. For more information and tickets, click here.


February 20th Whiskey Tasting and Tapas: End your holiday weekend right at Liberatore's Eldersburg,
Mingle with guests and delight in the expertly paired libations and tapas.

Feb 24-26th Come Fly Away:  A new musical tribute to old blue eyes is showing for a limited engagement-February 24-26 at the Baltimore Lyric Opera House.  Click here for tickets, and use the code word SINATRA for an exclusive 20% discount on tickets


Feb 27th Wine Dinner & Discussion with founder of Cantiniere Imports: Facci will host Maurizio Farro who will discuss his love of wine, his roots in Napoli, as well as introduce Fontezoppa winery, considered to be the best producer in the Marche region. For more information or reservations, contact Facci by telephone.


Feb 29th Remembering Rosa Ponselle: The Pikesville, Maryland library will hold a program in remembrance of legendary opera diva, Rosa Ponselle.  The program will include:  documentary film footage,  images from her " Villa Pace" estate, portions of unreleased interviews with Robert Lawrence and Susan Gould, her earliest recorded selections from her Vaudevillian years with her sister Carmella Ponselle, and much more!


March 4th   St. Leo's Ravioli Dinner
Join this annual tradition hosted at St. Leo's in Baltimore.  For more information, or to learn about volunteering this weekend, click here.

Meet Patrizio

Siting influences ranging from Tony Bennett and Elvis Presley to Adriano Celentano and Gianni Nazzaro, this international singer/songwriter is not in the least easy to categorize. Gathering inspiration from salsa, swing, and ballads alike, Patrizio Buanne creates an expressive, charismatic sound, all his own. Born in Naples in 1978, Patrizio spent most of his childhood between his family’s hometowns of Naples and Vienna thanks to a thriving restaurant business, Patrizio discovered a great appreciation for cultures and languages early on.  By his late teens, he was already fluent in Italian, German, English, French, and Spanish. Although it made sense for the young man to study interpreting at university, which he did, he uncovered an even greater passion born of his natural singing ability and propensity to entertain people. Finding his start in small, local talent competitions with his own rock band, Patrizio’s talent was eventually sought for a Papal visit in Wroclaw, Poland when he was 17. In front of 85,000 attendees, he performed a song half  in Italian and half in Polish, winning the hearts of many with his soaring vocals, linguistic aptitude, and tangible appreciation for the gift of song. His instant popularity with the Polish public landed him his first local record deal. Losing his father the same year, Patrizio recounts that the music itself and the goal to make his family proud helped to keep him alive and strong amidst the devastating loss of his beloved father.

By 1999, although quite successful in entertainment, Patrizio sought more exposure as a recording artist. He invested his own time and money in creating concepts to pitch to record labels and international concert promoters. In 2004, he found synergy with manager Jim Morey and the duo were able to record with an orchestra an illustrious collection of romantic and folkloric Italian songs, many of which the talented singer grew up listening to with his father. Signed by a major label company, Patrizio released his international debut in London titled “The Italian”, accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; after its first release in 2005 it reached the top ten on the pop charts in the UK in no time. The album spread like wild fire throughout Asia, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, and Europe. His second album, “Forever Begins Tonight” found success in the United States, and marked a new chapter where the artist performed and lived primarily in the US. With the help of manager and confidant Morey, Patrizio uncovered yet another global success with his self- titled album, “Patrizio”. He continues to promote his record and tour throughout the US. Want to learn more about this gifted Italian performer who is every bit as kind as he is talented? Stay tuned this week for an exclusive interview with Patrizio, courtesy of Ciao DC!

Gli Italiani di New York Author Event

Tuesday, February 21st Event: The Italian Cultural Institute in collaboration with Italians in DC will present the book Gli Italiani di New York, by Maurizio Molinari. The author is the United States correspondent of the major Italian newspaper La Stampa. This event will introduce the book club ParoLab of Italians in DC.This book offers an overview of various generations of Italians who arrived in the Big Apple (2.7 million now live there,) weaving together numerous stories that highlight different epochs and different backgrounds. “If you want to know Italy’s creativity you should go to New York. There, you will find the pride of flying the Italian colors during the Columbus Day parade on Fifth Avenue, the American patriotism of those who lost their lives at Ground Zero, the courage of the firefighters and the marines on the frontline in the war against terrorism, the multitude of dialects spoken at the Arthur Avenue marketplace, the social transformations described in Gay Talese’s works, commercial successes in the TV shows of Maria Bartiromo and Charles Gasparino, passion in the political battles of Mario Cuomo and Rudy Giuliani, creative imagination in the works of Gaetano Pesce, Renzo Piano e Matteo Pericoli, fashion provocation in Lady Gaga’s attire… The Midtown top managers, who arrived in the past twenty years, operates in the XXI century, while on Fresh Pond Road in Ridgewood the “panelle” are still prepared according to the Sicilian recipes transmitted from one generation to the next.”

The panelists:
Maurizio Molinari, author of the book.
Anna Lawton, professor of literature and film studies and author of several books.
Guido Olimpio, correspondent of the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.
Peter Pace, United States four-star general retired, one of the Italians in New York featured in the book.
Gherardo Guarducci, owner of the West Village version of the ritzy Sant Ambroeus restaurant, also featured in the book.


Event presented in collaboration with Italians in DC With the support of Cafe Milano
DOORS OPEN AT 6:00 AND CLOSE AT 6:30PM
Reservations and photo id required - more here.

Modern Twist on Shakespearean Classic

Photo by Scott Suchman

By Francesca Hemsey

One of Shakespeare’s earliest romantic comedies comes alive again in Washington for an unconventional re-creation, at Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Lansburgh Theatre. PJ Paparelli, former associate director of the Shakespeare Theatre company, leads this modern adaptation of “The Two Gentlemen of Verona” with careful attention and a creative edge. The script may be an antique, but the themes transcend the test of time: young love, hormonal confusion, and impulsive decisions that have been complicating the lives of teenagers since the beginning of time.

Believed to have been written as early as 1590, some consider this to be Shakespeare’s first play. It is also a piece in which we see his initial framework for some recurring themes he goes on to develop more thoroughly in later works, including cross-dressing protagonists, mistaken identities, and the problem of loyalty versus egoism. “The Two Gentelemen of Verona” focuses on none other than, you guessed it, two young men living in Verona. Loyal friends Valentine and Proteus find themselves amidst the woes of young adulthood marked by the pressure to determine where their goals lie and how they will go about attaining them. Their paths diverge when Valentine departs Verona for an adventure in the big city of Milan leaving Proteus behind with his sweetheart Julia. Considerable prodding from his father to venture to Milan with Valentine eventually drives Proteus from Verona, but not before he promises to forever love Julia in a tearful adieu. Reunited in Milan, the two young men fall in love with the same young woman, the Duke’s lovely daughter Silvia. With all the young women in this vivacious city, two best friends would have to fall in love with the same gal, but then again it would not be Shakespeare without crazy coincidences and strife among friends. More trouble ensues as Valentine is banished, Proteus strategizes to woo Silvia, and Julia ventures to Milan to reclaim the heart of Proteus. The plot is vibrant and generously laden with everything from fickle young hearts to mistaken identities, and a band of outlaws.

Paparelli transports the youths from the 16^th century to the present, replacing Verona with a wealthy teenage utopia, Jack Daniels, twitter, an iTunes. Yet, the dilemma is timeless regardless of the time period, when Valentine and Proteus engage in a power struggle to win the heart of a fine young lady. Will friendship prevail for these young gentlemen, or will hormonal angst drive them further apart? With tickets normally priced from $39- $90, you can enter to win two, courtesy of Ciao DC, to see “The Two Gentlemen of Verona” playing at the Lansburgh Theatre through March 4.

New Italian PM Mario Monti Visits with President Obama

On February 9th, 2012, Italy's Prime Minister, Mario Monti visited the White House for a bilateral meeting with President Obama.  Among the main topics discussed was the commitment of the U.S. to helping stabilize the Eurozone and the continued partnership and values that the countries shared on a range of security issues. Click here to see the video of their remarks after the meeting, or read the transcript here!

Cineforum Italiano: Lezioni di cioccolato (Lessons in Chocolate)

Genre: Commedy

Director: Claudio Cupellini

Released: 2007

Duration: 98 min.

In Italian with English subtitles

The Washington, DC Italian Language Meetup Group invites you to join an early Valentines Day celebration! On February 12 at 4:00pm at Letelier Theater in Georgetown they will be screening a light, refreshing movie where comedy and life mix in the right proportions: LESSONS IN CHOCOLATE. A movie that can be seen even by the most sensitive, emotional audience. Nobody dies, nobody cries.... just smiles!

Mattia (Luca Argentero), a 32 year old building contractor in Perugia has all the trappings of success; nice suits, a flashy car, a gorgeous girlfriend and is on a promising career path. But behind this facade he is cutting corners with site safety and hiring illegal workers.

He is about to close the biggest deal of his professional life, when one of his illegally hired workers, Kamal (Hassani Shapi), is badly injured when falling off a roof because of lack of scaffolding. Kamal, who came to Italy from his native Egypt to realize his dream of opening his own pastry shop, threatens to sue Mattia unless Mattia takes his place in an advanced chocolate making course at the Perugina factory! Mattia has no choice but to take Kamal’s place in the school and assume his identity.

But there Mattia meets the model student Cecilia (Violante Placido), who ends up falling for the same sort of man she unfortunately always falls for. Among laughs, misunderstandings and mouth-watering recipes, Mattia will discover a way to bring his and Kamal's disparate cultures together while finding love and new meaning to life at the same time.

Tickets are $10.00 at the door (cash only, no credit/debit card processing) or $8.00 if you're a member of The Washington, DC Italian Language Meetup Group and you've purchased in advance on the group's website: http://www.meetup.com/italiano/

Full event details are available on the website for the group: http://www.meetup.com/italiano/