NYU CASA ITALIAN ZERILLI MARIMO’ PRESENTS:


'LA CANTATA DI NATALE from the production "LA CANTATA DEI PASTORI"

(The Shepherd's Cantata)

 

December 18 2019 at 7:00pm

24 West 12 Street – RSVP needed

Celebrating I GIULLARI DI PIAZZA 40th Anniversary

and home base at New York University

 

honoring Prof. Stefano Albertini and Kostja Kovic

 

A Neapolitan Renaissance Christmas show - Based on the Traditional Southern Italian Play Written by Andrea Perrucci in the 17th century and still performed annually in the environs of Naples.  

Told by masked character of Commedia dell”Arte, narrated in English by LA BEFANA (the Good Witch of Christmas) featuring  the Italian Bagpipe.

 

The concert will feature the southern Italian traditional Christmas music of the show, narrated by la Befana.

The story of the play is set just before the birth Christ, during Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem, and the devil has dispatched his demons to stop the Savior's birth. Their escapades are entwined with those of Razzullo, one of the Pulcinella masks here depicted as a comic, mischievous Neapolitan scribe to is always hungry. 

Conjuring up tempests, dragons and other unseemly tricks, the demons try to do away with the play's characters but all are under the Angel Gabriel's protection and the holy couple finally reaches Bethlehem. Before good triumphs over evil, there is an incredible clash, in dance between the archangel and the devil and a grotesque, but humorous, depiction of heaven and hell.

I Giullari di Piazza will be celebrating their 40th anniversary! and this production was first presented at NYU in 1984 with the sponsorship of the Italian department, where the company was in residence for 10 years.

 Compilation of pictures

The cast includes:

Artistic director Alessandra Belloni also in the role  of Mary -mezzo soprano, percussion, 

Max Mc Guire – as la Befana 

 Joe Deninzon – devil, violin

Susan Eberenz flute - piccolo recorders 

Wilson Montuori or Enrico Granafei - classical guitar 

Serena Davini - percussion

Mark Mindek Archangel Gabriel on stilts

James Karcher – Devil sword fighter 

 Alex Ross, The New York Times
"A musical play presented by the traditional Italian group I Giullari di Piazza (is) a rarity among Christmas programs; it somehow manages to be both riotously entertaining and   curiously haunting, even profound......a vibrant and uproarious performance."

Jon Pareles The New York Times

The music, directed by John La Barbera, is folkish, aiming for vitality above precision and often achieving both. The adaptation, by the troupe's director, Alessandra Belloni, is geared for action rather than quiet piety; in a climactic battle, Miss Belloni as Maria beat a large drum and sang out while the Angel Gabriel  took on the dragon. Giuseppe de Falco as Razzullo (and Vincenzo Corrao as the birdlike Sarchiapone)  shared slapstick duties.

 

Upcoming Events

Previous events

A 45-Year Retrospective Celebration

Witness the legendary saga of I Giullari di Piazza as they return to where it all began! Join co-founders Alessandra Belloni and John La Barbera for a spectacular, one-night-only event detailing the company's vibrant 45-year history. This isn't just a retrospective; it's a Commedia dell’Arte story, rich with the passion, rhythm, and daring spirit of Southern Italian folk opera and theater.

For the first time ever, thanks to Professor Stefano Albertini, Director of Casa italiana, this unforgettable evening will reveal the group's evolution starting from a bold dream in the mythical '70s.

We're not just looking back; we're unveiling the future! Hear the details of the ambitious project to transform 45 years of priceless archival material—from vinyl, scores, and posters to folk operas—into a digitized Master Archive!

Free Event - Reservation link coming soon!

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HEALING TARANTELLA TRANCE DANCE WORKSHOP

Let's get the poison out of our body with the Tarantella as Musical Exorcism for Halloween!
Experience the healing power of Tarantella rhythms and dance with internationally renowned singer, percussionist, and teacher, Alessandra Belloni (author of "Healing Journeys with the Black Madonna," published by Inner Traditions - Bear & Co).

The workshop features the tarantella dances and frame drum technique used as music and dance therapy for centuries throughout the Mediterranean. unique style of tambourine playing and the ancient healing trance dance of the tarantella, used to cure the mythical bite of the tarantula.

This workshop will give people the means to fortify themselves against daily stresses. Students will become empowered through discovery of the ancient art of frame drumming and a technique of music and dance therapy that will enable them to discover the means to achieve homeostatic balance and inner relief of stress, while restoring spiritual and physical energy.

$65 in advance, $75 at the door

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This concert is a fiery "journey" through the South of Italy featuring ceremonial dances performed as ritual by the women of Southern Italy as processional chants and ritual drumming in honor of the Black Madonna, known as: Tammorriata, from Naples, and other dances such as the tarantella Calabrese, Pugliese and Napoletana.

The music comes from different regions of Italy, mainly Naples, Calabria, Sicily, Puglia and it has been arranged with a very unique world music sound. The performance ends with the authentic Pizzzica Tarantata, the healing dance from Puglia used to cure the mythical bite of the tarantula, a form of depression that afflicted mainly women. At the end of our concert we invite the audience to dance the tarantella or “pizzica” in a celebration of life and good energy unique of the Italians using red ribbons in a circle.

Ensemble Includes: Alessandra Belloni - Artistic Director, lead vocals, percussion ritualdance John La Barbera - Music Director, composer, guitar chitarrabattente, mandolin Sebastian La Barbera - mandolin, guitar Featuring dancer Amara

$35/person

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