FILM SCREENING at NYU Casa Italiana: PAGANI directed by Elisa Flaminia Inno. In Italian with English subtitles. In the Southern Italian town of Pagani, near Pompei, Easter is followed - a week later - by a rite celebrating the Madonna delle Galline (the Madonna of the Hens), a version of the Virgin Mary venerated with ancestral songs and dances. For thirty days, the devotees move in unison to maintain this tradition, an event that turns faith into memory and transcendence. The documentary follows the citizens of the town during the preparations of the Feast, when everything comes together in a catharsis of music and dance to welcome the birth of a new Spring. Followed by a conversation with the director and musician/dancer/teacher/ethnomusicologist Alessandra Belloni who will perform a demonstration of music and dance with her group I Giullari di Piazza featuring violinist Mara Gerety, dancers Francesca Silvano & Amara.