Cultural Events and Festivals

Introduction — Dante Nights in Ravenna: between memory and celebration Ravenna, a small Emilian-Romagna town with a rich Byzantine legacy, is best known for its dazzling mosaics and for being the final resting place of Dante Alighieri, the poet of the Divine Comedy. Each year the city transforms to honor one of world literature’s greatest authors: public readings, lectures, performances, nighttime walks and light installations create the « Dante Nights, » a mix of scholarship and convivial…

Introduction — Ravenna Festival: music, art and Byzantine heritage The Ravenna Festival is a major cultural highlight that each summer turns the small historic town of Ravenna into an international stage. Located in Emilia-Romagna in northeastern Italy, Ravenna is famous for its UNESCO-listed Byzantine mosaics. The festival makes the most of this extraordinary setting: concerts, operas, recitals, contemporary art exhibitions and interdisciplinary events take place in basilicas, museums and theaters across the city, creating a…

Introduction: Ravenna by Starlight — a city steeped in mosaics Ravenna, a small town on Italy’s Adriatic coast, is often hailed as a Western treasure of Byzantine civilization. Its churches and mausoleums hold vast stretches of history stitched together in tiny golden tesserae: luminous narratives that have been shining for centuries. And then there’s the Mosaic Night — an after-dark event that turns these sacred spaces into theatrical, contemplative stages, where artificial light embraces the…