Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò NYU celebrated Agrigento’s investiture as Italian Capital of Culture 2025 by hosting for an afternoon one of the Greek themed performances staged in the Theater of Juno, opposite the Temple of Concord in the Valley of the Temples. The musical, which left the packed auditorium of Casa Italiana NYU with bated breath, is titled The Reawakening of the Gods and recounts several myths that remind human beings, who often sin of hubris, of the existence of the gods.
“Last summer I was visiting the Valley of the Temples Archaeological Park with my little cousins,” said Casa Italiana NYU director Stefano Albertini. “In the golden light of a perfect sunset, we were walking through the site, and we were surprised by magnificent voices and dancing creatures in the distance. I took a few photos and posted them on social media in the evening. After a couple of hours, the company’s director, Marco Savatteri, wrote me saying that it was his company rehearsing for the dawn performance. I was deeply impressed by their professionalism and started harboring the dream of bringing them to New York.”
Before the start of the show, Giovanni Di Maida, Council Member of the Agrigento Cultural Capital Foundation, who stressed the importance of an event of this caliber in promoting the architectural and scenic beauty of Agrigento, and Savatteri, took the stage. “The show is about Greek mythology, which is also the root of our culture,” said the company director. “We stage it at dawn in the Valley of the Temples. Although today we do not have the Temple of Concordia behind us, we are in the temple of Italian culture in New York. These young people, who dedicate their lives to art, want to talk about beauty, with music, dance and theater.”
The lights go out, the curtain opens, the Greek gods come alive.
