The Italian Library #34. Saint Francis. Words, verses and beauty

There are words that cross the centuries and continue to speak to us. Saint Francis, Francis, Brother Francis, the Poor Man of Assisi. He is known as a man of faith, as the Patron Saint of Italy, but in his words we also discover a man capable of writing, singing and recounting beauty: that of creation, of simplicity, of brotherhood and of a deep relationship with God and with nature.

On this evening we will try to draw closer to Francis through his writings and his poetry, to discover not only the saint we know, but the man who, with his Canticle of the Creatures, was among the initiators of the Italian literary tradition.

An opportunity to listen to his words, to be surprised by their relevance and perhaps to find, through them, something that also speaks to us, through the performance by Piero Maccarinelli and the poetry of Francis narrated by Beatrice Sica.

Book your place HERE

Piero Maccarinelli
After beginning his studies in Architecture at the Politecnico di Milano, he graduated in directing from the Civica Scuola del Piccolo Teatro di Milano in 1979. In 1982 he began his career as a director, after important experiences as assistant to Maurizio Scaparro and Ermanno Olmi, both in theatre and in cinema. In 2004 he founded Artisti Riuniti, a cultural organisation created to foster dialogue between theatre, cinema and literature, of which he was artistic director. He was also artistic director of the Teatro Parioli in Rome and a teacher in several important theatre training schools, including the Accademia Nazionale d’Arte Drammatica Silvio d’Amico. In his directing career he has had the joy of directing Elena Zareschi, Umberto Orsini, Valeria Moriconi, Rossella Falk, Gianrico Tedeschi, Anna Maria Guarnieri, Luciano Virgilio, Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Mariangela Melato among many others. In 2023 he was appointed Commendatore of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by President Sergio Mattarella.

The performance Fratello Sole Sorella Luna
Freely adapted from the film by Franco Zeffirelli and adapted for the theatre by Angela Demattè under the direction of Piero Maccarinelli, it premiered in Assisi on 5 March 2026.

Beatrice Sica
BEATRICE SICA is Associate Professor of Italian Studies at University College London. She trained in Italy, the United States and France. She has been a visiting professor at the universities of Geneva, Bologna and Naples-Suor Orsola Benincasa. She has published essays on Italian Futurism and French Surrealism; on magical realism; on Italian literature and art during and after Fascism; and on Italian poetry.

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