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• Educational Travel 2025 - TORINO and Piemonte: SOLD OUT

  • Start
    20 Jan 2025
  •  
    6:00 AM
  • End
    18 Oct 2025
  • Location
    Torino, Italy
  • Spaces left
    0

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  I am delighted to invite you to Torino, my hometown, a true hidden gem off the beaten path, in the northwestern region of Piemonte, Italy.

  Torino has been described as Italy’s most elegant city, with its Baroque and Art Deco architecture, featuring a fascinating historic center with grand squares, cobbled streets, and art nouveau cafes. For centuries, Torino was the seat of the royal Savoy family and from 1861 to 1865 it was the first capital of the Kingdom of Italy. 

  A vibrant and elegant city, seat of a prestigious University founded in 1404, Torino has a unique legacy that blends dedication for creativity and innovation, a strong literary and visual art tradition and a passion for good food and wine, as shown by the innumerable bars, restaurants and bookstores present throughout the city. 

  Torino offers a unique blend of history, art, culture and fantastic culinary and wine experiences.  With its proximity to UNESCO World heritage sites of Langhe and Monferrato — that we will visit — along with the lesser known but equally spectacular area of Vercellese, Torino is a fantastic destination for a memorable vacation. 

  I am looking forward to accompanying you on this trip and show you everything I know of this city and region that I love and still call home. 

  Astrid Garino, MD
  President, The Italian Cultural Center of Minneapolis/St.Paul

  .......................................

  DATES: October 4 to October 18, 2025

  Our package includes:  
  

  • Accomodation in a 4-star boutique hotel in historic downtown Torino (14 nights), breakfast included
  • Italian language lessons, 15hr/week at an accredited language school
  • Two extra 1.5hr conversation classes
  • All day excursion in the Langhe, with private bus and guide
  • All day excursion in the Vercellese and Monferrato, with private bus and guide
  • Guided visits to select museums, royal residences and castles
  • Excursion to the ancient Abbey Sacra di San Michele
  • Wine tastings
  • Aperitivi, lunches and dinners as described  in the program (7) 
  • Cooking class with professional chef 

  For a detailed description of the program click  HERE

  RATES

  DOUBLE occupancy	SINGLE occupancy
  $4,750	$5,450

  Registration fee: $500 (non refundable)

  First half of the balance due by March 15, 2025

  Balance due by June 15, 2025

  .....................................................

   A detailed presentation of the program  will be offered in person on

   Sunday , January 26, 2025, from 1:00 to 2:30 PM 

    at the Italian Cultural Center

  To register to the free presentation click HERE

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• From Italy to Minneapolis: Cello Quartet Concert

  • When
    13 Sep 2025
  •  
    1:00 PM
  • Location
    Westminster Presb. Church Hall 1200 S. Marquette Avenue Minneapolis, MN 55403

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  Experience a unique afternoon of Italian artistry as the Cello Quartet of the Youth Orchestra "Luigi Cherubini" visits Minneapolis on their debut U.S. tour.

  Admission

  The concert is free and open to the public. Donations are welcome to support the Italian Cultural Center's mission to promote Italian language and culture in Minnesota.

  Venue and Parking

  Westminster Presbyterian Church Hall

  1200 S. Marquette Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55403

  Metered street parking is available.

  Underground parking is available for $12 at 95–99 Alice Rainville Pl.

  (Please remove the cars after the event. There is no re-entry to the building once the concert concludes).

  
  

  For more information or questions, please contact Ron Lattin at ron@theitalianculturalcenter.org

  

  Artist & Program Highlights

  Founded by Riccardo Muti in 2004, the “Luigi Cherubini” Youth Orchestra brings together talented young musicians selected through auditions by top European professionals. Named after the renowned composer Luigi Cherubini, the ensemble reflects both a strong Italian identity and a European cultural vision. Members serve for three years, creating a constantly renewed group that bridges conservatoires and the professional music world. With a regular summer residency at the Ravenna Festival and participation in Muti’s Italian Opera Academy, the Cherubini continues to grow in prestige. In 2024, it celebrated its 20th anniversary with major concerts in Vienna and Lucca, both conducted by Muti.

  Composed of four young and talented musicians from the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra—Francesco Angelico, Matteo Bodini, Luca Dondi e Luigi Visco— the cello quartet was formed in 2024 out of their desire to explore and expand the musical possibilities offered by this type of ensemble. Since its inception, the group has performed a variety of programs ranging from the original repertoire for cello quartet to adaptations of classical and operatic works that showcase the virtuosity of the four musicians.

  The concert program combines original repertoire with great masterpieces of Italian opera. The first part features elegant compositions by Fitzenhagen, Goltermann, Klengel, and Sollima, designed to highlight the expressive potential of the quartet. The second part is a tribute to the operatic tradition, with transcriptions for four cellos of famous arias and preludes ranging from Monteverdi to Puccini, including works by Donizetti, Mascagni, Rossini, and a rich selection of pieces by Giuseppe Verdi.

  This program is presented in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute of Chicago, Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini and Fondazione Ravenna Manifestazioni.

  
  

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• IL CIRCOLO LETTERARIO: Revisiting Machiavelli

  • When
    21 Sep 2025
  •  
    11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
  • Location
    ICC Temporary Home - 323 Washington Ave. S., Second Floor, Minneapolis

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  Revisiting Machiavelli
  

  The Italian political philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527) is often remembered negatively as an unscrupulous political thinker. In his posthumously published work Il Principe (The Prince, 1532), he advised rulers to exercise power without regard for the lives of their enemies—or even their subjects. In his 2014 book Thoughts on Machiavelli (University of Chicago Press), Leo Strauss famously called him a “teacher of evil.”

  More recently, Italian screenwriter and director Franco Bernini, in his historical novel Il trono (The Throne, Edizioni e/o 2023; Europa Editions 2024), explores how Machiavelli became the historical figure we know today.

  In this Circolo Letterario, moderated by Pieranna Garavaso, professor emerita at the University of Minnesota Morris, we will first look at the historical context of Machiavelli’s political career and then consider why his thought continues to attract such enduring interest.

  Don’t miss this opportunity to revisit one of Italy’s most provocative thinkers and reflect on his lasting impact.

  
  

  Pieranna Garavaso is native Italian and came to the US to earn a PhD in Philosophy (at the U of Nebraska Lincoln). She taught Philosophy at the University of Minnesota Morris for 34 years. She was awarded the UMN Morris Alumni Association Teaching Award (2003), the Horace T. Morse Alumni Association Undergraduate Teaching Award (2004) and the UMN Morris Faculty Research Award (2017). Her areas of research include History of Analytic Philosophy, Philosophy of Mathematics, and Feminist Philosophies.  She has published articles in Italian and English and authored, co-authored or edited several books; the last collection she has edited is the Bloomsbury Companion to Analytic Feminism (2018).  As Emerita/retired she plans to devote more time to reading and discussing Italian literature.

  
  

  In 2021, ICC was appointed Presidio Letterario of the Società Dante Alighieri (DA), one of the most important Italian institutions for the promotion and appreciation of Italian language and culture since 1889. ICC is now part of a network of cultural centers in Italy and abroad promoting events and initiatives related to Italian literature. Since 2009 DA has officially been part of the jury of Premio Strega, the most prestigious Italian literary award.

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