Rai launches 'In viaggio con la zia' art travel show

Starting June 4, 2016, Italian state broadcaster Rai will air 'In viaggio con la zia', a nine-episode series exploring Italian art and culture. The show airs Saturdays at 12:30 PM on Raiuno before TG1, running until July 30. Art historian and Macro Museum curator Costantino D'Orazio leads the program alongside TV travel personality Syusy Blady and Livio Beshir. Each episode visits a different Italian art city: Florence, Rome, Naples, Turin, Bologna, Palermo, Milan, Bergamo, and Bari. D'Orazio describes the format as neither documentary nor reportage but a narrative blending ancient and contemporary art, legends, history, and music. The show aims to introduce mainstream audiences to lesser-known cultural sites, artisan workshops, old haberdasheries, unusual museums, regenerated suburbs, conservatories, and music schools. Celebrity guests tied to each city will appear, such as Gigi Proietti in Rome and Lello Arena in Naples. D'Orazio, a veteran of art-themed TV and radio programs including '#staiserena' on Radio 2 and 'Geo e geo' on Rai 3, and creator of 'AR – Frammenti d’Arte' on RaiNews24, will highlight a monument or archaeological site each episode. The series marks a renewed attention by state television to Italy's artistic heritage, coming at a time when Rai director general Antonio Campo Dall'Orto is under scrutiny for his reforms.