Sanremo is preparing to once again embrace a Hollywood star, John Travolta.
The actor who “made entire generations dance” will be at the Ariston in the second evening of Wednesday 7 February. But he won’t be the only guest.
Everything is ready for Sanremo 2024, edition 74. The very famous Italian song festival this year will take place from 6 to 10 February 2024 in the magical Ariston theatre. Amadeus will have Marco Mengoni alongside him in the first evening, while in the second evening he will be joined by Giorgia. The third evening will instead be co-hosted by the very nice comedian Teresa Mannino. Instead in the fourth you will have the presence of the very lively showgirl Lorella Cuccarini.
The owner of Ariston and the head of the press office reveal seventy years of Italian music in a book. All to read….
1/ Books to read. Ariston, the magic box of Sanremo
Why read it
The Ariston theater is the most iconic place of Italian entertainment and music.
An almost sacred place, where the greatest artists have performed for six decades, from Domenico Modugno to Måneskin, from Dario Fo to Rudolf Nureyev, and where since 1977 the most loved event has been celebrated, the most debated rite that makes us feel Italian, that everyone wants to participate in, even if only to criticize it: the Sanremo Festival.
But what is at the origin of every great undertaking if not the dream, the vision, of a person who goes against the grain?
In the 1950s, Sanremo was one of the many cities struggling to recover from the rubble of war. Aristide Vacchino, who has cinema in his blood, designs an unprecedented structure – a multiplex capable of hosting every type of show – to restore joy and entertainment to his fellow citizens.
It took ten years to complete its construction, amidst bureaucratic slowdowns and hostility from the competition, but in 1963 he finally managed to inaugurate his jewel.
It is the beginning of the “magic box”, a space of creativity which, season after season, continues to provide emotions and a sense of human wonder.
The authors are Walter Vacchino, (Sanremo, 1947) with his sister Carla is the owner of the Ariston cinema-theater, which has hosted the Sanremo and Albenga Festival since 1977.
And Luca Ammirati (Sanremo, 1983) has been in charge of the press room at the Ariston theater for some years.
2/ Books to read. Barefoot on the ground
Why read it
The story of Baba Cesare, who left for India in search of true spirituality, the life of a man who, chasing pleasure, discovers renunciation.
Barefoot on the ground it is a research path seen from within, with the eyes of someone who put himself on the line not for a week, a month or a year, but for a lifetime.
And, even though his path was frighteningly tortuous, Baba Cesare truly tried.
Step by step he became part of an archaic quest, which leads to the cave.
But since his path started from our cities, his words manage to act as a bridge between me and that instinctive way of life it attracted me, but it seemed unattainably far away.
It is a search that goes against the current: while the whole world is moved by the desire for “always more”, babas try to have less and less, instead of throwing themselves into the ocean of complexity, they swim up the river of life like fish to return to the source, to the One.
They return to truths that are not ancient, but eternal, and which suddenly, when you feel the need, become completely current again.
Info. Folco Terzani. Barefoot on the ground. Tea. 16 euros.
3/ Books to read. A heroic heart
Why read it
Cultivate compassion, embrace adversity, train the mind: the age-old teaching that can free us from suffering.
A mind in the wild tends to hurt everyone within its range and is a source of great suffering, even to ourselves.
Taming it is therefore the first step to knowing your true nature and reconnecting with otherswhich requires a lot of internal work.
This is why we can say there is something heroic in undertaking the path of liberation to become enlightened beings.
But how to do it? Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo gives her wise response in this book, offering precious commentary on one of the classic texts of Tibetan Buddhism dearest to her, The thirty-seven stanzas on the practice of a bodhisattva by Thogme Sangpo.
His explanations and advice thus give life to a guide that invites us to behave like true bodhisattvas (one who aspires to enlightenment with the intention of helping all sentient beings to free themselves from suffering and its causes)allowing us to treasure compassion in an authentic way and thus be a source of liberation for ourselves and others.
4/ Books to read. Kama Sutra for everyone
Why read it
Whatever your sex, your gender and your couple configuration are normal and deserve glorious enjoyment!
Kāmasūtra for everyone. Illustrated, inclusive guide to fabulous sex It is a practical and fun manual which frees sexuality, relationships and love from any pre-packaged standard or diktat.
Having overcome the concept of “standardized” love represented mostly by a hetero couple where both partners are beautiful and slim but which do not represent real life at all, this guide to sex reminds us, however, that real people also make love!
Tall, short, thin, fat people, with or without abs, with stretch marks, cellulite, scars, disabilities, young, old… because in love there is no limit.
In this book we get rid of rules, norms and beliefs: because tastes evolve with us, abilities change, and also identity, that and above all who we like today we may like less, or more, tomorrow…
We talk about pleasure, about male and female anatomy, inclusiveness, overcoming taboos and sex toys.
New tastes and sought-after positions are proposed without any kind of inhibition or shame and they give love and sexual advice for a playful and joyful love life.
What harm would there be in seeking the best balancing act for pleasure? Nobody. So it’s always better to try. In search of the paradise of the senses or rather, the ecstasy of love.
Info. Théa, the Fox with Ringlets. Kāmasūtra for everyone. Illustrated, inclusive guide to fabulous sex. Kiwi editions. 18 euros
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