News

The movie and dinner night on March 30 was a sell-out. Thanks to all our members and Il Punto members (our co-sponsors) who attended.

We heard rave reviews of the light comedy, "Troppo Napoletano," and Professor Antonio Iannotta's insightful comments about the film and its director. The dinner that followed at La Medusa was delicious and festive. Having the restaurant just for our group was a special treat -- and members enjoyed getting to know each other better!

Thanks to our events planning committee, particularly Roberta Torgerson and Elisabetta Valentini. And a special shout-out to Il Punto for agreeing to co-sponsor this event with us.

Our next event will be in late May. Check back soon for more details.

Our Sister City Association is joining Seattle’s other 18 sister cities in Seattle Foundation’s #GIVEBIG 2018 on May 9.

As many of you know, GIVEBIG is a one-day online giving event to raise funds for nonprofit organizations serving greater Seattle. Save the date and help us continue to build meaningful and lasting global friendships, partnerships, and connections. Your donation will help SPSCA fund projects and exchanges that connect the people of Seattle and Perugia.

During our 25th anniversary year, what a great way to commemorate this long-term relationship! And prepare for the next 25 years!

Mark the date on your calendar to GIVEBIG!

If your travel plans this spring include Milan or Florence, you're in luck. Whether your interest is in politics or in fashion, you'll enjoy any of these recently opened exhibits.

In Milan at Fondazione Prada, you can view "Post Zang Turm Tuuum: Art Life Politics: Italia 1918-1943." The exhibit features more than 600 paintings, sculptures and design objects from Italy’s Fascist era, by the likes of Giorgio di Chirico, Giorgio Morandi, Gino Severini and dozens of unknowns, displayed amid countless historical documents that map the rise and fall of the interwar art world. The exhibit will be on view through June 25.

In Florence, there is "Dawn of a Nation," through July 22 at Palazzo Strozzi. The New York Times calls it "a less ambitious exhibition" that offers a window onto Italian art amid postwar reconstruction. Unlike “Post Zang Tumb Tuuum,” documentary material is displayed in an initial gallery where a newsreel montage takes us from the foundation of the republic in 1946 to the “dolce vita” of the 1960s.

Read more about both exhibits here.

A more light-hearted exhibit, also in Milan, tells the history of Italy through its clothes. "Italiana: Italy Through the Lens of Fashion,” unsurprisingly,  opened as part of Fashion Week in Milan in late February.

The exhibition at Palazzo Reale runs through May 6. You can read more about the exhibit in this question-and-answer feature with the exhibit curators that appeared in the New York Times.

Puccini’s classic thriller Tosca can be viewed at a live screening on Tuesday, March 13 at 7 p.m. at Crest Cinema Center in Shoreline. Tosca is one of the great evenings of opera, and from its strident opening chords conjures up a world of political instability and menace.

Director Jonathan Kent’s production for The Royal Opera, recorded live, captures the dangerous political turbulence of Rome in 1800. Giacomo Puccini’s dramatic work was a hit with audiences when it opened in 1900 and it remains one of the most performed of all operas with a gripping plot and glorious music.This production is sung in Italian with English subtitles.

The show begins at 7 p.m. at the Crest Cinema. Tickets are $15. More information, opera trailer and advance ticket purchases are available here. The Crest is located at 16505 5th Avenue NE at 165th Street in Shoreline.