The 19th Italian Language Week in the World provided the framework for the inauguration of the first Center for Italian Language and Culture in Bahrain, established at the Royal University for Women (RUW). The Center is connected to the Italian language course, the first in the country, initiated by the RUW at the beginning of the year in collaboration with the Embassy of Italy in Manama. The new Center was inaugurated by the Italian Ambassador Domenico Bellato and the Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs, HE Shaikha Rana bint Isa al Khalifa. With the occasion, Prof. Marco Ruffini, professor of History of Art Criticism at the University La Sapienza in Rome, delivered an appreciated conference on Michelangelo and the Italian Renaissance. An exhibition of panels was also set up, created by the students of Italian at the RUW, depicting the history of the great Italian actresses who played a leading role in the theatrical and cinematographic culture of Italy, in homage to the theme of the Week of the language: “Italian on stage”.
The program of the Week also included a lecture by Prof. Marco Ruffini held at the Flexible Theatre in Manama on the unparalleled art of Leonardo da Vinci and its relationship with natural wonders, as well as the screening of the movie “Io, Leonardo”, produced on the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the death of the great Italian genius. Both events, held by the Italian Embassy in Manama in collaboration with the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities, have been very successful and have attracted hundreds of art lovers and students.
