Cari amici –

The three events Circolo Italiano is proposing for spring and summer 2016 will address different aspects of Italian culture as well as the way Italians have fun.

Opera is much loved in Italy and the first Circolo’s event of the spring is a matinee at the opera on Sunday, April 24th to see Puccini’s Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi at the Granada Theater.  You will receive all the information and options for this event this weekend. So, stay tuned!

The second Spring event covers another popular aspect of Italian culture: food.  And among the rather large selection of national and regional Italian cuisine there is a food that is much loved by all, grandi e piccini (adults and children): pizza.

I know, I know, pizza is definitely not high cuisine. But, let me tell you a little secret:  if you gather a group of friends in a lovely Montecito garden, you offer them piping hot Italian pizza made in a real Italian pizza oven right in front of their eyes together with salads and other delicious foods, and last but not the least, you add to the mix some good wine and live music, what do you get? A great Montecito Pizza Party!

The date of Circolo’s Montecito Pizza Party is Saturday, May 14th.  More details coming your way in a week or two.

The third event will be in the summer. As we have done for many years now, we will organize our Ferragosto Picnic at Montecito’s beautiful Manning Park.  For those new to Circolo Italiano, Ferragosto is the most popular summer holiday in Italy.  It is also a very ancient one as it was started by the Roman Emperor Augustus in the 1st Century AD.

It will be on Sunday, August 14, 2016, starting at 12:30. Save the date! More details will be coming to you in early July.

I hope to see a lot of you at these events. It will be fun!

 Ciao a tutti, Gabriella