Michela Gerosa

Returning for the third year are the Lessons in History conceived by Editori Laterza and produced in co-production with the Donizetti Theater Foundation of Bergamo and with the support of BCC Oglio e Serio: the new edition, scheduled at the Donizetti Theater, always on Saturday mornings, between Jan. 10 and Feb. 14, 2026, is entitled Cultural Capitals., with five meetings dedicated to as many cities that over the centuries have made their mark on history, contributing to the birth and development of important cultural movements, whose influence later proved fundamental. It begins on Jan. 10 with Laura Pepe, already the star of the first edition of History Lessons, and with The Athens of Pericles, the cradle of democracy and political management of public affairs. A week later, on Jan. 17, Alexander March Magnus will speak about. Venice and the dawn of books: for it is on the lagoon that everything changes and that the book publisher begins to have that valuable role of cultural mediator preserved to this day. For the third event, scheduled for January 24, Alessandra Bucossi will address the theme. Constantinople, the new Rome, where the first city stands for the emblem of cosmopolitanism, unparalleled witness of those cultural transfers between East and West at the origin of the Byzantine world. Rome, city of the gods will instead be the focus of the Feb. 7 meeting with Maurizio Bettini: a still "pagan" Rome, creator of unprecedented religious suggestions mediated by the customs of the Italic peoples and the Greek tradition. Finally, on Feb. 14, the spotlight will be on. St. Petersburg and the avant-garde, with Paolo Nori who will go back with memory and words to the St. Petersburg of the October Revolution: a hotbed of novelty, an unrepeatable ferment that, in the mingling of the new socialist ideology and the artistic avant-gardes, will radiate throughout Europe. Sergio Gandi, Bergamo City Councilor for Culture, extends the Administration's greetings to "a valuable initiative such as Lezioni di Storia, which brings to our city, for the third consecutive year, the collaboration and expertise of Laterza, one of the most authoritative publishers in the country, specialized in educational publishing. The review represents an added value in the programming of the Donizetti Theater Foundation: not only music and theater, but also education and popularization, themes that already distinguish many of its activities, especially those dedicated to young people. And especially dedicated to them are these in-depth historical encounters, which transform the stage of the Donizetti Theater into an ever-growing space of culture, also open on Saturday mornings. Citizens and townspeople can satisfy their desire for in-depth study, listening to authoritative voices of our present, to discover and explore figures and stories of our past." Giorgio Berta, president of the Donizetti Theater Foundation, confirms how "this initiative is a significant expansion of our range of activities, flanking the many proposals in the spectacular sphere, from prose to opera to jazz. The History Lessons fully correspond to that diversification of offerings that

DONIZETTI OFF.: THE PALINSESTO OF DONIZETTI OPERA TO EMBRACE BERGAMO WITH DOZENS OF SIDE EVENTS A festival within a festival with concerts, open rehearsals, conversations, book presentations, guided tours, participatory performances and activities for children, exhibitions and breakfasts between the Donizetti Theater and Casa Natale: the Donizetti Opera offers a busy schedule of more than 30 initiatives from World Opera Day on October 25 through November 30, 2025   Exhibitions, concerts, conversations, open rehearsals, figure theater, walks on the Walls, and even breakfast with Gaetano at Casa Natale or brunch at the Theater: Donizetti Opera 2025 is not limited to major productions on stage, but involves the city of Bergamo with "Donizetti Off," a busy schedule of events, many of them free, which after the recently concluded CineDOperameetings and the opening at the Donizetti Studio of the widespread exhibition Caterina Cornaro Experience. A Queen to Remember , continues from Oct. 25, World Opera Day, until Nov. 30 to tell the story of Donizetti in every form. Between music, art and speech, audiences of all ages are involved, from the youngest children with their families to the largest business professionals: a festival that becomes, in this way, a collective experience, capable of bringing opera into dialogue with the city, tradition and history with actuality and contemporaneity, thanks to the will of the Fondazione Teatro Donizetti. In this regard, Sergio Gandi, Deputy Mayor and Councillor for Culture of the Municipality of Bergamo, states, "With the Donizetti Off, the Donizetti Opera festival takes an important step this year, gathering and expanding in an organic review the collateral events that animate Bergamo. It is confirmation of a mature cultural project, capable of networking the city's major cultural institutions, as well as artists and citizens around the name of Donizetti and the value of shared culture." Giorgio Berta, President of the Donizetti Theater Foundation, continues, "The schedule of side events was created to give recognition and continuity to a set of initiatives that knows how to bring alive the relationship between the festival and the city. This new review represents a natural evolution of the mission of the Donizetti Theatre Foundation: to spread musical and theatrical culture in all its forms. And the achievement of that goal is also made possible thanks to the invaluable support of the many supporters of our theater to whom we renew our gratitude." Massimo Boffelli, General Director of the Fondazione Teatro Donizetti, specifies, "Gathering the festival's collateral events into a single review means enhancing the choral work of so many parties that contribute to the growth of Donizetti Opera. But it is also a sign of a theater that opens its doors wide to the city, in a continuous osmosis between the halls and the squares. The Donizetti Off is the result of a concrete collaboration between institutions, partners and city realities, a sign of a community that invests with conviction in culture, involving several generations in a single project." And he specifies M° Riccardo Frizza, Artistic and Musical

Donizetti Theater Foundation The 2024-2025 Theater Season Tuesday, October 14 marks the beginning of new subscription sales for the 2025/2026 Theater Season and from October 21 new subscriptions for Altri Percorsi and Operettas are available Great success for the Theater Season renewal campaign: over 92% compared to last Season The countdown has begun for the 2025-2026 Theater Season and Altri Percorsi of the Donizetti Theater Foundation. Tuesday, October 14 marks the start of new subscription sales for the Theater Season, while from Tuesday, October 21, subscriptions for Altri Percorsi series and the Operetta Season will be available. From Tuesday, November 28, individual show tickets will be available for purchase for all seasons. From October 14, tickets are also available for other events included in the Theater Season: the December 31 musical The Dream Factory, concerts at the Teatro Sociale, Rigoletto: The Mystery of the Theater for Opera Family. All programs can be viewed on the Foundation's website www.teatrodonizetti.it. Online sales at www.vivaticket.com. "Over 92% of Theater Season subscribers have renewed their trust in us, and the high demand from educational institutions has already led us to add an extra performance of Lysistrata with Lella Costa and two more of The Late Mattia Pascal with Giorgio Marchesi, one of the Altri Percorsi titles. The start of new subscription sales, and soon individual tickets, couldn't begin under better circumstances," comments Massimo Boffelli, General Director of the Donizetti Theater Foundation. Specifically, here's a summary of the two Seasons.   Drama Season The beginning, from December 6 to 14, 2025, is entrusted to a show that refers to our country's theatrical tradition, specifically to the Ligurian one embodied by Gilberto Govi and his Pignasecca e Pignaverde , one of the celebrated Genoese comedian's warhorses, revived by an overwhelming Tullio Solenghi, with scenic design by Davide Livermore. Following, from January 17 to 25, 2026, the Donizetti, with Crisis of Nerves , will host for the first time a direction by Peter Stein, who returned to his beloved Chekhov with the three famous one-act plays The Bear, On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco and The Proposal, interpreted in rotation by various actors, among whom Maddalena Crippa stands out. Another great actress starring in a classic will be Lella Costa, who will perform in Lysistrata directed by Serena Sinigaglia: the show will come to Bergamo from February 7 to 15, with Monday the 9th's performance added due to high demand from schools. The Theater Season program will feature other prestigious actors and directors. Among the latter, Sergio Rubini directs The Jekyll Case , choosing to stage the literary classic The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, in a reinterpretation that transports the text into an engaging, cinematic setting. On stage from February 21 to March 1, Daniele Russo and other actors. With the Venetian company Stivalaccio Teatro, always dedicated to the study and representation of commedia dell'arte, we will return, from March 7 to 15, to traditional theater, with Harlequin Mute

In September, it's traditionally back to school, and for young aspiring actresses and actors, it's time to join Progetto Young, the established training workshop promoted by the Fondazione Teatro Donizetti, strongly supported by Maria Grazia Panigada, Artistic Director of the Prose and Other Paths Season, and curated by director Fabio Comana. The workshop is aimed, as usual, at young people aged between 18 and 26, with at least 2 years of basic theatrical training and a propensity for group work. To participate, candidates must fill out the appropriate form, attaching their resume from September 8 until September 22 at 12:00 PM: https://forms.gle/GC5TeFW7urHvLQuSA. The following week, specifically on October 8 and 9 from 5 PM to 8 PM, those who have passed the selection based on their resume will be invited to participate in a second selection consisting of a collective practical test, in seminar form. The workshop, which will be conducted by Fabio Comana himself and will take place at the "Benvenuto Cuminetti" rehearsal room of the Teatro Donizetti, will allow, through a series of exercises, improvisations, and text interpretations, a more direct and in-depth understanding of the technical and human characteristics of the participants. From this second selection, the group of actors and actresses for the Young 2025-2026 project will be formed, which will include some of the outgoing students from the previous year and the newly selected students. Participation in the workshop, which will take place from October 2025 to June 2026, requires a registration fee of 300 Euros, which can be paid in a single installment before the start or in two installments (first installment in October 2025 and second installment in January 2026). Attendance is mandatory. The goal of Progetto Young is to contribute to guiding young people towards an advanced acting career, but also and above all to encourage a vision as open as possible to the future of theatrical art, to provide a series of elements for each person to invent and experiment with their own idea of theater: an essential condition for the renewal of languages and the evolution of a theater capable of speaking to this ever-changing society. The training of actors and actresses has from the beginning aimed to give back to the city the fruit of their creativity, actively and recognizably participating in some significant events of the city's cultural life. An indispensable element for the training of young students will be the shared viewing of scheduled shows and participation in meetings with guest artists of the Prose and Other Paths season of the Teatro Donizetti and with other theater professionals. "For the Fondazione Teatro Donizetti, Progetto Young represents a concrete way to bring young people closer to theatrical life, beyond the viewing of the shows offered during our Seasons," comments Massimo Boffelli, General Director of the Foundation, "The Teatro Donizetti, and with it the Sociale of Città Alta, is the home of the people of Bergamo and even more so it must be for the new generations, also through

Alessandro Barbero will return on Monday, December 15 to Teatro Donizetti in Bergamo (6:30 PM) to present his new book about Saint Francis. This special event is organized by the Teatro Donizetti Foundation in collaboration with Editori Laterza and is supported by Intesa Sanpaolo, BCC Oglio e Serio, and Sitip Spa. Advance tickets available from Wednesday, July 23 at the Teatro Donizetti Box Office and online through Vivaticket. Tickets cost 15 euros. "We are delighted to announce the return of Alessandro Barbero to our theater, one of the most significant figures in Italian culture in recent years, a scholar and educator who can communicate great historical events and figures like no other" - comments Massimo Boffelli, General Director of the Teatro Donizetti Foundation - "Barbero was a hugely successful protagonist of the first edition of History Lectures in 2024, and having him back with us for a special event, thanks to our well-established partnership with Editori Laterza, has special significance in reaffirming the importance and value of our cultural offerings." During the “meeting, Alessandro Barbero will explore the many versions of Saint Francis's life that have come down to us. Who was Francis of” Assisi? Was he the person described in the biographies written by friars who “knew him personally, or the one portrayed in Bonaventure of Bagnoregio's biography written forty years after his death, or the one described in other texts that were discovered after they had been made to disappear? Barbero will show us the” intricate hall of mirrors that has multiplied, fragmented, and ultimately constructed the story of the saint we all think we know. Tickets Single seat €15.00 Sales begin: July 23, 2025, 4:00 PM At TEATRO DONIZETTI Piazza Cavour, 15 - Bergamo Tel. 035.4160 601/602/603 Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM (excluding holidays) On event days: one and a “half hours before the start” ONLINE teatrodonizetti.vivaticket.it For more information, visit www.teatrodonizetti.it

Applications can be submitted until September 2: Required age between 25 and 45 years old and proven theatrical experience The complete text of the call is available at the following link: https://trasparenza.teatrodonizetti.it/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/FTD-DO25-CATERINA-CORNARO-Bando-selezione-figuranti.pdf New opportunity to work with the Donizetti Theatre Foundation: a casting call is open to select four male extras aged between 25 and 45 for the new production of the opera Caterina Cornaro by Gaetano Donizetti, to be performed at the Donizetti Theatre in Bergamo as part of the Donizetti Opera 2025. The production, scheduled for November 14, 22, and 30, will be directed by Francesco Micheli, with musical direction by Riccardo Frizza and the participation of the Donizetti Opera Orchestra and the Teatro alla Scala Academy Choir. For this production, we are looking for male performers of any nationality, with average build (height between 175 and 185 cm, size from 46 to 54) and at least some proven theatrical experience, as well as full availability during rehearsal days, from October 13 to November 11, and performance dates. Applications must be received no later than Tuesday, September 2, 2025 via email at selezione@fondazioneteatrodonizetti.org, complete with all attachments required by the call, which can be found in the Transparent Administration area of the Foundation's website at https://trasparenza.teatrodonizetti.it/documentazione/bandi-aperti/ By Monday, September 8, audition invitations will be sent out for selections scheduled for Thursday, September 11 2025 in the presence of the opera's director and their collaborators, at one of the Donizetti Theatre Foundation venues in Bergamo.

It's “time for Herbie Hancock: for the” last of the three concerts at Lazzaretto, the “summer edition of Bergamo Jazz will bid farewell, on Friday, July 18 (9:30 PM), to the” highly anticipated return to the city, after over 50 years, of one of the brightest stars in the global music firmament. The renowned American pianist and keyboardist will perform leading a band including trumpeter Terence Blanchard, guitarist Lionel Loueke, bassist James Genus, and drummer Jaylen Petinaud, all musicians of proven talent. The “event, organized by the Donizetti Theater Foundation and the International Piano Festival of Brescia and Bergamo to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Filippo Siebaneck's passing, is supported by BCC Milano and is part of the series of events at Lazzaretto promoted by the” Department of Culture of the City of Bergamo. Eighty-five years old and not feeling it, 14 Grammy Awards, a vast discography that has always transcended styles and genres, prestigious collaborations, soundtracks for important films: all this and more makes Herbie Hancock one of the most representative artists of over 60 years of modern music history, a true living legend, a free spirit who, with his music, or rather his many musics, has indelibly marked the sonic imagination from the 1960s onwards. His concert on March 17, 1972, at the Donizetti Theater is rightfully included in the annals of Bergamo's jazz festival: at the time, thirty-two years old, Herbie Hancock won over the audience with the electrifying electroacoustic blend of his Mwandishi sextet, performing during the festival's opening night alongside trumpeter Eddie Henderson, trombonist Julian Priester, saxophonist and clarinetist Bennie Maupin, bassist Buster Williams, and drummer Billy Hart. Just this past March, for Bergamo Jazz 2025, Eddie Henderson and Billy Hart returned to the Donizetti stage as members of The Cookers. Born in Chicago in 1940, Herbie Hancock was the typical child prodigy: at just 11 years old, he played a Mozart concerto with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He approached jazz by listening to two very different pianists, Oscar Peterson and Bill Evans. His first engagement that brought him into the spotlight was in 1960 with Donald Byrd. In 1963, he recorded his first album for Blue Note, Takin' Off, which includes what would become one of his biggest hits, "Watermelon Man". Other albums for Blue Note followed (Maiden Voyage and Speak Like a Child among others), but most importantly, he joined Miles Davis's quintet, completed by Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter, and a very young Tony Williams on drums. With Davis, Herbie Hancock would also share the electric visions of the late 1960s, participating in epochal albums like In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew. Drawing from Davis's lesson, Hancock would also explore electric and then electronic sounds on his own with the Mwandishi sextet and then with the Headhunters, embracing the cause of funk jazz with the latter and considerably increasing his popularity. His return to acoustic jazz wouldn't prevent him from venturing into hip hop in 1983 with the album Future Shock,

The summer edition of Bergamo Jazz at the Lazzaretto, organized to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Filippo Siebaneck's passing by the Teatro Donizetti Foundation and the International Piano Festival of Brescia and Bergamo, in collaboration with the Municipality of Bergamo and with the support of BCC Milano, continues with another appointment of absolute importance. After the performance by Paolo Fresu, Richard Galliano and Jan Lundgren's Mare Nostrum trio, which was crowned with great public success, Thursday, July 10 (9:30 PM; tickets from 25 to 40 Euros) features the concert by Kurt Elling, the most acclaimed of today's jazz singers, who, together with the Yellowjackets, one of the most iconic bands in the jazz-fusion area, will retrace the legendary musical exploits of Weather Report on this special occasion. It will be a concert-event with the explicit title “Celebrate Weather Report”, featuring Kurt Elling's brilliant baritone timbre and his prodigious ability to improvise on any melody, and the formidable technical expertise of saxophonist Bob Mintzer, keyboardist Russell Ferrante, bassist Dane Alderson and drummer William Kennedy. Together they will approach Weather Report's music – especially from the period when Jaco Pastorius was in the group – with due respect, but taking those liberties worthy of every true jazz musician, infusing new nuances into pieces now considered classics. Kurt Elling is today's embodiment of the most authentic male jazz singing. Winner of two Grammy Awards, for which he has been nominated 16 times, the Chicago vocalist possesses such a variety of colors that he fears no rivals in his field, leading him to be defined as a "Sinatra with superpowers." Perfectly at ease with fast tempos and particular stylistic techniques such as vocalese, Kurt Elling also knows how to be a refined interpreter, displaying elegance and a palpable poetic sense. The Yellowjackets are one of the most renowned brands of what is commonly called fusion-music. Formed in the late seventies by guitarist Robben Ford, who would soon go solo, the Yellowjackets still base their foundation on one of the founding members, keyboardist Russell Ferrante, who has been joined along the way by saxophonist Bob Mintzer, drummer William Kennedy and, more recently, Australian bassist Dane Alderson. With over 25 albums behind them, the "yellow jackets" are a perfectly oiled musical machine in all its gears, still capable of challenging themselves and charting new sonic trajectories. Founded in 1971 by saxophonist Wayne Shorter, keyboardist Joe Zawinul and Czech-born double bassist Miroslav Vitous, riding the wave of Miles Davis's revolutionary electric turn in the preceding years, Weather Report remains a cornerstone in jazz's expressive evolution at the crossroads with other musical genres, including the most sophisticated pop. The entry of phenomenal bassist Jaco Pastorius into the group's ranks would bring Weather Report to levels of popularity typical of a rock band.   For the last of the three concerts at the Lazzaretto, Bergamo Jazz will welcome back to the city on Friday, July 18, after over 50 years, Herbie Hancock, one of the brightest stars in the