Romadiffusa 2023, the program of the traveling festival

Installations and public art in the alleys of the historic center, open courtyards of historic buildings, music and experimental performances in museums, secret concerts in an underground amphitheater, stand up comedy in bars, open studios of artists and artisans, a widespread exhibition throughout the center : from the Church of Santa Lucia del Gonfalone to a garage to the laundry in Piazza Farnese, as well as mosaic, ceramic, watercolor and lithographic printing workshops: these are just some of the events planned by Romadiffusa, the first traveling cultural festival created with the aim of changing the narrative of the city, enhancing the territory and building networks.

Designed and created by Sara D’Agati And Maddalena Salernoyoung founders from the creative agency BLA Studiothe project is born to tell the story of the contemporary capital, turning the spotlight on a different area of ​​the city every yeartransforming it for 4 days into a creative and active space, where new and modern contents meet historical and traditional locations. Compared to the first, this second edition will be even broader and more impactful, embracing the Old Townthe symbolic heart of the city, phit and run tourism and subject to a growing emptying by residents in favor of short-term rentals and to proliferation of anonymous and standardized commercial activities to the detriment of shops and authentic realities.

“ROME CITY TODAY” and the claim of the project, which was created with the dual purpose of enhance the city’s cultural heritage and skills, connecting them with virtuous contemporary manifestations, moving them forward together and to change the perception of Rome as a static and decadent city, anchored to a grandiose past, which struggles to network and renew itself.

“Too often we hear that Rome is a stagnant, difficult city, which cuts out young people, the new and any attempt at change. The very representation of the city, even when virtuous, relies on the “open-air museum” and on a decadent rhetoric that does not take into account its contemporary and vibrant aspects.” Sara and Maddalena explain. “In the same way, Rome is a city that struggles to create a system, to network. There are a myriad of projects that do not find a container within which to hybridize and emerge: the public sector interacts little with the private sector, little is invested in culture and in the territory, groups and associations carry out similar or complementary projects, without being at the current of each other’s existence.”

ROMADIFFUSE wants to offer this container. As? “Every edition we build one mapping of the arealiterally going door to door in search of the most authentic and interesting places and realities, at the same time, we launch ‘call for content’ we research and involve artists, musicians, performers and creative realities in Italy and abroad, to create content site-specific, and we create a sort of tetris between historical and iconic places of the city and contemporary, unpublished, original contents. The aim is to bring different and varied audiences to enjoy contents that they would otherwise never have discovered, in places of traditional Roman culture: the bakery, the tavern, the body shop, the artisans’ workshops, the churches.”

Much more than a festival, therefore. This is a project that sees the mapping of the entire city, area by area, in order to build a database of everything authentic and interesting that exists at a territorial and skills level, to give it visibility, enhance it, and put it online. Each edition of the festival will leave a ROMADIFFUSA garrison, a place where the networks activated during the festival can continue to interact and contaminate each other, with our support. Among the objectives of ROMADIFFUSA is to become a fixed appointment, which encourages tourists and interested parties to return to the city every year. Therefore attracting a different type of tourism, interested in learning more, in also understanding the contemporary manifestations of the city, in stopping for the necessary time and, above all, in returning. It also aims, therefore, to stimulate greater investments in the city, to facilitate dialogue between public and private, and simplify the use of content through a centralized booking system (from Palazzo Altemps to the ceramic workshop in the artisan shop, just one click is enough).

Sponsored by the Municipality of Rome Capital which, he recognized in the project “an important tool for social innovation and urban regeneration 2.0.” Explains Lorenzo Marinone, Mayor’s delegate for Youth Policies. “It is an invitation to experience city spaces, to create new connections between people, professions, different artistic and cultural expressions that come together in a path of knowledge of the city and territorial promotion. Another exceptional aspect: it is a project born from the creativity of two very young people.”

In co-planning with the Rome I Center Municipality, which allowed, in addition to pedestrianization, the opening of the Civic Museums, Palazzo Altemps and Casa delle littature. “We are happy to have collaborated on this very original event, which will bring one of the oldest and most fragile parts of our wonderful city to life with joy and awareness.” Declares the Councilor for Culture, Sport and Youth Policies of the 1st Municipality, Giulia Silvia Ghia. “This is why I hope that ROMADIFFUSA will make you discover and love the Ansa Barocca, and I hope that a strong message of respect for these unique places will pass through. We are all responsible and we must all be its first custodians”.

The Festival, which is held periodically in a different area of ​​the city, has already captured the public’s attention with all the workshops sold out just a few days after the release of the programincludes a rich schedule of events open to all, some of which require reservations, which mix different disciplines in unexpected public and private contexts.

THURSDAY 28 SEPTEMBER

The festival opens at midday on Thursday 28 September, with a lyrical performance during the Campo de’ Fiori marketfollows theinstallation Of Nicholas Sagoni in a historic courtyard, curated by Operativa Arte Contemporanea and, in the afternoon, the solo piano concert of the child prodigy Denny Costantini at Primoli FoundationThe vernissage by the Korean artist Jieun Lim in the Ermes-Ermes galleryinstallation site specific by Chloe Arrouy and performance of Francesca Heart in the ancient lithograph of art Acquaforte Ferranti.

FRIDAY 29 SEPTEMBER

Friday opens in the morning with theinstallation and the artistic duo’s “Beast Mother” workshop Big sweaters to the Barracco Museumone widespread tasting of wines starting from Camillo a Piazza Navona to touch the iconic wine bars of the district, the Vernissage by the artists of the N0 Project Room in Via del Governo Vecchio, the take over of the historic Piazza della Moretta and Piazza Pasquino with music, DJ sets and food, stand up comedy at Bar Perùthe performative dinner with Brama at Cappella Orsini and then Steve Pepe live in an underground amphitheater a stone’s throw from Piazza Navona.

SATURDAY 30 SEPTEMBER

Saturday opens with open roads formatwhich sees the pedestrianization of via del Pellegrino and via dei Banchi Nuovi with stands and displays in the street of artisans, merchants and antique dealers food, wine and music. Followed by workshops in the morning in the shops of the historic centre: engraving art, mosaic, book-binding, wicker weave And ceramic. In the afternoon La review of shorts at Palazzo AltempsThe creative writing course at the House of Literature, thetribute to Gabriella Ferri under his historic home.

On the art side there is the widespread performance “Meta-tourism” by the artist run space Post Ex edited by Giuliana Benassi, which reflects places and clichés linked to the mass use of the historic center, the live of Coca Puma at the Napoleonic Museumthe performance by Rebeca Pak who sets up a “ideal” bar inside Galleria Eugenia Delfini, the exclusive guided tour of the exhibition of New York artist Matvey Levenstein in the gallery Lorcan O’Neillthe Psychoedelic Kitchen performance in the Vicolo del Celso grocery store. Finally, in the evening live music in Piazza della Moretta, live by Planet Opal in the courtyard of Gaddi Palacethe Treetops at the Arciliuto theater.

SUNDAY 1 OCTOBER

Sunday opens with jazz at the Barracco Museumnew workshopsfrom the floral design with the designer Dylan Trippto Watercolor, to chess in the square, to various tours: from the Queer Rome to the Rome of cinema to those of architecture, vintage and photographic. For lunch various options, from pasta in Piazza dei Coronari, at the musical brunch at Camillo’s in Piazza Navona. In the afternoon, the jam session in Piazza Pasquinothe piano marathon at Palazzo Braschithe projection to Altemps Palace with Little America, the performance of Neux Voix in Ancient Lithography Ferranti and much more.