Todi Festival 2017: new direction with secret concerts and research theatre

The Todi Festival, founded in 1987 by Silvano Spada, celebrated its 30th edition in 2016 under the new direction of Eugenio Guarducci and management by Agenzia Sedicieventi. The 2017 edition runs from August 26 to September 3 and continues this new course, emphasizing cross-disciplinary contamination. Guarducci announced three strategic directions: a dedicated section for contemporary and research theatre called Todi OFF, hosted at Teatro Nido dell'Aquila and curated by Teatro di Sacco, with five theatre critics (Andrea Porcheddu, Sergio Lo Gatto, Alessandro Toppi, Maddalena Giovannelli, Francesca Romana Lino) running a critical blog to educate audiences; increased involvement of Umbrian cultural producers alongside national and international figures; and deeper dialogue with the local socio-cultural fabric through alternative spaces and local agri-food products. The festival opens with a debut on Grisélidis Réal, a writer, painter, and activist who turned prostitution into art. Vittorio Sgarbi performs a show on Michelangelo with live music by Valentino Corvino and visuals by Tommaso Arosio. New format Giardini Segreti opens private and public terraced gardens in Todi's historic center for secret concerts by independent Italian singer-songwriters and electronic artists. The festival's official poster is by Marco Tirelli and Robin Heidi Kennedy, who will later hold solo exhibitions at Palazzo Comunale di Todi.