With the event “Meeting Preview” that took place last May 21st to the Galli Theater in Riminithe exhibitions, shows, the Children’s Village and the Sports Citadel of the 2024 edition were presented, which will take place from 20 to 25 August with the title “If we are not looking for the essential, then what are we looking for?”.
«The shows and exhibitions of this Meeting», declared the president of the Meeting, Bernhard Scholz, «are an invitation to rediscover what is essential, to become more aware of what makes our life truer and more creative, what which supports our existence, especially in this moment of growing conflict and many decisive challenges for our future.”
The themes of the exhibitions will be the history of jubilees in view of the 2025 Jubilee, the work of the American photographer Curran Hatleberg, with 65 original shots, the work of the American painter who lived in Italy William Congdon (with an important unpublished work) and the literary work by the Swedish writer Pär Lagerkvist (1951 Nobel Prize for Literature). Other exhibitions will present the current affairs of Alcide De Gasperi, the story of the Austrian spouses Franz and Franziska Jägerstätter (Franz was a martyr of Nazism, proclaimed blessed in 2007 by Pope Benedict, also the subject of the film “The Hidden Life” by Terrence Malick) and the Christmas truce on the Western Front in Christmas 1914 (told in 2005 by the film “Joyeux Noël” by Christian Carion).
Another exhibition will present social initiatives in Russian civil society today; Two other exhibitions also have a social theme, one on the rebirth of Italian villages and one on the Progetto Arca Foundation in Milan. An exhibition will be dedicated to the life of the Servant of God Enzo Piccinini, a doctor from Modena dear to the public at the Meeting. The scientific exhibition, curated by the Euresis Association, will focus on the special conditions that emerged in the evolution of the Universe that make life on our planet possible. Finally, the Holy Land will be at the center of an exhibition on the two basilicas of the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor and Gethsemane, while the exhibition on the Flight into Egypt will present the places where the Holy Family passed and which are the object of a devotion that unites Christians and Muslims.
The inaugural show of the Meeting is also dedicated to the Holy Land, which will be performed on 20 and 21 August starting at 9.30 pm at the Galli Theater with the title “Who are you? The Challenge of Jerusalem”, an original theatrical production based on the work of the famous French writer Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt, starring Ettore Bassi, directed by Otello Cenci. Also at the Galli in the following evenings will be staged the theatrical shows “Acqua” on August 22nd, by Giovanni Maddalena, Nicola Abbatangelo and Giampiero Pizzol, “Fra’. Saint Francis, the superstar of the Middle Ages”, by and with Giovanni Scifoni on 23 August, while on 24 August Ramin Bahrami, one of the most acclaimed performers of the Bach repertoire, will perform on the piano.
All this content will be available on the website www.meetingrimini.org starting from 6.00 pm today. Tickets for the Galli Theater shows can be purchased online.
Maestro Bahrami himself was one of the main personalities who spoke at the “Anteprima Meeting” today at the Galli Theatre, together with the film and TV series actor Ettore Bassi, and Cecilia De Carli, former professor of contemporary art at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart , and to the poet Sauro Albisani. Instead, the French writer Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt, the American photographer Curran Hatleberg and the actor Giovanni Scifoni sent video messages. The speeches of the mayor of Rimini Jamil Sadegholvaad and the president of the Meeting Bernhard Scholz concluded the evening.
«In this dark moment», Ramin Bahrami declared among other things, «friendship and dialogue between peoples are needed more than ever. The Rimini Meeting is a shining example of this, but good intentions must be followed by facts. We must forget our economic interests and put humanistic ones first. Dialogue, understanding each other is the only solution. Bach’s music is a wonderful example of this. Let’s take up tools, not weapons, let’s stop with our selfishness and learn to sing the beauty of the world through culture and our humanity. Less artificial intelligence and more human intelligence. It’s still possible”.
The program of the 2024 Meeting is completed by the Children’s Village, which will invite children and teenagers with an even richer and more engaging program than the last editions. Expanded in its proposals and spaces, the Cittadella dello Sport will also this year try to respond to the desire of many young people to do sporting activities during the Meeting.
On the structural, logistical and service fronts, there are many peculiarities of the 2024 Meeting. The exhibition spaces have increased by over 6,000 m2 compared to the 2023 edition, the catering seats have been increased to 5,000, the bookshop will occupy 1,000 m2, the partner companies there will be 130. The Meeting, which will remain open every day until midnight, confirms itself as the only Italian event with free entry and parking; even more unique for the contribution of three thousand volunteers from Italy and abroad.
«Once again the Meeting will be a unique opportunity to propose moments where beauty opens us to the recognition of a positive and constructive perspective», stated president Bernhard Scholz. «Sharing experiences and reflections promotes the development of authentic relationships, capable of overcoming adversity and hostility. The search for what is essential in our personal and social life is a vital issue in order not to remain distracted or indifferent in the face of great cultural, social, technological and geopolitical changes.”
The complete program of the 2024 Meeting, including the conferences, will be presented in Rome in July.
