Commedia Divina 80: Performances and books about Dante and the 1980s

Revisiting the 3 cantos of the Divine Comedy by Florentine New Wave artists of the 1980s is the original take of the “Commedia Divina 80” project, which was ideated by the promoting group that last year launched the idea of retrieving 1980s Florence. The three performances are entrusted to three shakers of the 1980s cultural scene: Nicola Vannini on Friday 3 September with Inferno dark, Mizia Ciulini on Saturday 4 September with Purgatorio selvaggio and Nicoletta Magalotti, aka NicoNote, on Sunday 5 September with Divine Comedy Paradiso. The Marino Marini Museum will host this unique showcase that’s bound to offer fascinating insight.

At first glance, the cultural ambience would appear to be worlds apart, but the charm lies in exploring Dante’s verses through the sensibility and spirit of the post-modern Florentine new wave while also focusing on perspectives linked to gender differences (a man, a transgender and a woman).

The three shows

Nicola Vannini and his “Inferno” will begin the event on 3 September at 7pm. A multifaceted mover and shaker on the Florentine music scene, he started out by opening an underground club in 1980 and working as a DJ at Rokkoteca Brighton, where Litfiba and many other historic Florentine bands performed for the first time. He became a member of Diaframma until the end of 1983, contributing to compositions featured on “Siberia”, although he did not sing in the band. His interpretation is “another Inferno”, a journey into more obscure meanders.

On 4 September, Mizia Ciulini will explore Purgatory, a place where playing with fire is the norm as you learn to tame and exorcise the Inferno.

NicoNote will close the event on 5 September with the performance “Divine Comedy PARADISO”, consisting of declamations and mixes. A creator of audible worlds and mutating atmospheres that cannot be labelled as a single genre, NicoNote proposes her own universe of sound, ranging between fragments of songs and acting, which merge with the local ambience. 

The event also includes talks and book presentations in the BAMMM! Books & Art space at the Marino Marini Museum, which will feature a special edition of the art and artist book fair dedicated to 1980s memorabilia for the occasion.

Entrance is included in the Museo Marino Marini ticket price (6 euro). Booking required. For more information and to book, see www.museomarinomarini.it