From 4th to 7th July, Ancona will host the seventh edition of UlisseFestthe travel festival conceived and organized by the publishing house EDTLonely Planet’s partner for Italy. The event, which will take place in collaboration with the Municipality of Ancona, Ancona Servizi and the Omero Museum, promises to transform the capital of the Marche region into a lively crossroads of meetings, concerts, cinema and shows, all under the theme “Exploring the Unknown”.
Prestigious guests and previews
UlisseFest will feature 100 distinguished guests and 50 events in 4 days, offering a variety of cultural and artistic experiences. Guests will include well-known names such as Alessandro D’Avenia, Vasco Brondi, Malika Ayane, Skin (voice of Skunk Anansie), Umberto Galimberti, and Federico Rampini.
In preparation for the festival, three special previews will accompany the public towards the official start:
– **May 31**: Alessandro D’Avenia will talk about the topic “Ulysses, the journey and our daily odyssey”.
– **July 2**: Peppe Servillo will present a musical reading inspired by Tiziano Terzani.
– **July 3**: Screening of works from the Banff Mountain Film Festival at the Lazzabaretto Cinema.
The trailer of the festival
Diffused events and cultural spaces for UlisseFest
The festival will embrace many of the most iconic places in Ancona, from the new Arena sul Mare to the Porto Antico, from the Mole Vanvitelliana to the theaters and squares, offering a widespread and engaging experience. The program will feature thematic meetings, debates, workshops and laboratories.
Meetings and debates
There will be numerous moments of reflection and dialogue on various themes related to travel and discovery:
– **Umberto Galimberti** will explore the ethics of the traveler in the age of technology.
– **Federico Rampini** will discuss future hopes and intercultural dialogues.
– **Carla Perrotti**, known as the ‘lady of the deserts’, will share her adventures in the desert.
– **Simone Pieranni** and **Alex Kerr** will offer fascinating tales of Asia and Japan.
Varesenews and our director at UlisseFest
UlisseFest and the publishing house EDT are partners of our project Materiawhere the new editorial staff of the newspaper will find a home. Our director Marco Giovannelli will be present at three different times. On Friday afternoon at 6:30 pm he will moderate a meeting on the theme: Travelling without barriers. Accessibility narrated by those who are committed to guaranteeing the right to tourism for all. Two prestigious speakers: Giovanni Ferrero of Turismabile and Aldo GrassiniPresident of the Omero Museum.
On Saturday at the same time the following will be speaking at the meeting: Discover, meet, walk.
The paths as a life experience. A meeting to learn about projects and paths around Italy and beyond. With Monica Nanettijournalist, author and walker, Stefano Lorenzidirector of Appennino slow and promoter of the Via degli Dei, Marco Giovannelli, journalist and walker, director of Festival Glocal. Moderator Denis Falconieri.
On Sunday morning he will participate in the Walk (with dip) in the bay. From Ancona to Portonovo, along the cycle and pedestrian path of the Conero Park, among Mediterranean scrub, coves and corners of paradise capable of making every step magical and opening the perspective on countless outdoor activities.
Workshops and Labs
The experiential soul of the festival will manifest itself through the Lonely Planet Academy, Japanese calligraphy workshops, urban phototrekking and the 11 km walk along the new Ancona-Portonovo cycle path. Workshops on storytelling, digital content creation and journalistic reporting will also be offered.
Music and shows
The evenings will be enlivened by concerts and DJ sets:
– **July 4**: Vasco Brondi will inaugurate the series of concerts at the Arena sul Mare.
– **July 5**: Super Taranta and the “Febbre a ’90” party.
– **July 6**: Malika Ayane and Skin will close the evenings with extraordinary performances.
“Exploring the Unknown” the theme of UlisseFest
“This is the theme chosen for the Lonely Planet Travel Festival which, for its seventh edition, lands in the capital of the Marche. – He wrote the director of Lonely Planet Italy, Angelo Pittro – The search for the unknown evokes a taste for challenge, the fascination of discovery, the need to get away from home and one’s reassuring habits or simply to abandon oneself to the desire to leave for the pure pleasure of going, no matter where.
As we travel, we discover that the world is still capable of surprising us, of offering us new scenarios and continually inviting us to look (a little further) ahead. As have done writers, journalists, artists, nomads and all the restless spirits we have invited to come on stage to tell us about their experiences, real or imaginary. And as did Marco Polo, of whom this year we celebrate the seven hundredth anniversary of his death and to whom we dedicate, together with the Festival delle Idee di Venezia (festivalidee.it), the theme of this edition, ideally connecting the two cities overlooking the Adriatic.
This year’s will be more than ever a widespread festival, capable of embracing and involving with its initiatives many of the most significant places in the city: from the new Arena sul Mare – to the Porto Antico – to the Mole Vanvitelliana, from theaters to squares, from loggias to streets to museums. There will be concerts, DJ sets, musical readings, workshops from our travel academy, an exhibition, a guided walk (from Ancona to Portonovo) and many meetings: 50 events, almost all free or at affordable prices, which will involve over 100 guests. Reflection, entertainment, the desire to be together. UlisseFest is all this but above all it is a celebration, of travel and of Ancona. And you are all invited”.
