Romeo Castellucci's 'La vita nuova' Sells Out in 8 Minutes at Art City Bologna

Romeo Castellucci, the Italian theater director and visual artist who received the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement from the Venice Biennale in 2013 and the Oscar della lirica 2018-19, presents the Italian premiere of 'La vita nuova' during Art City Bologna 2020. The work debuted in 2018 at Kanal – Centre Pompidou in Brussels and has since toured internationally to Wiener Festwochen in Vienna, Hellenic Festival in Athens, and Festival d'Automne in Paris. Based on Ernst Bloch's 'The Spirit of Utopia,' a philosophical classic written during World War I, the performance unfolds in a garage where dust and car covers create a melancholic silence. Five siblings converse, reflecting on the future and societal reconstruction from oppressive forces like alienating labor, economic systems, and politics. The piece critiques art as a tool for outlining ideas without concrete action. Through Castellucci's dialogues, the siblings become prophets opposing 'living with art' in favor of 'the art of living,' seeking new domestic and aesthetic hearths. Tickets sold out in eight minutes. The performances take place on January 24 and 25 at DumBO, via Camillo Casarini 14.