Christmas in Romagna: must-see events from Rimini to Ferrara

Romagna dresses up in anticipation of Christmas and the New Year and concludes 2023 with many initiatives under the sign of art and culture, including exhibitions, guided tours and great concerts. An opportunity to admire monuments, palaces, churches, museums of Romagna immersed in the magical atmosphere of Christmas, in the romantic light of the “Week of the 7 Moons.” So let’s discover together the main events of the Christmas period in the provinces of Rimini, Forlì-Cesena, Ravenna and Ferrara.

Rimini

In addition to the traditional visits to underground Rimini, the Galli Theater, the Library and Castel Sismondo, which houses the most emotional part of the Fellini Museum, during the Christmas holidays the City Museum offers free extraordinary visits, such as the guided tour to the small room of the Museum that will come, aimed at discovering the splendor of the masterpieces of the 14th and 15th centuries in the Museum in transformation, or the 19th-century walk (Dec. 30) in the company of the Director and the museum’s conservators. A unique opportunity to explore the history and art housed at the City Museum and Roman Rimini in the company of the Legionaries of Legio XIII Gemina. Then there is until January 7, 2024, the group exhibition L’Altra Stagione: a poetic tribute by fifty-four Rimini artists along three kilometers of beach, on the raised dune facing the sea horizon, to the city nominated for Italian Capital of Culture for the year 2026. Twenty benches and twenty-six glances at the winter sea, among the images and words of writers and photographers.

Forlì-Cesena

Continuing through Jan. 7, 2024 at the San Domenico Civic Museum in Forli is the exhibition Eve Arnold. The Work 1950-1980, promoted by the Fondazione Cassa dei Risparmi di Forlì, with the Municipality of Forlì, curated by Monica Poggi, created in collaboration with Camera - Centro Italiano per la Fotografia of Turin and realized in agreement with Magnum Photos.

The “Vero Stoppioni” Contemporary Art Gallery in Santa Sofia is worth a visit. Established in the early 1990s with the aim of collecting the works participating in the various editions of the Campigna Prize, works representing the most interesting Italian artistic trends from the 1950s to the present day, from Neorealism to Pop Art to the most recent contemporary experiences, are preserved here. Also worth a stop is the nearby Sculpture Park: the art trail that winds along the left bank of the Bidente River for about two kilometers and dialogues with the surrounding natural element.

Ravenna

In Ravenna, the eighth edition of the Biennale di Mosaico Contemporaneo is still running until January 14, 2024: monuments, museums, cloisters and other spaces become exceptional galleries, where ancient and contemporary art enter into a constant dialogue with each other, to accompany the public in discovering the city Capital of Mosaic. Among the scheduled exhibitions is Burriravennaoro, set up in the spaces of the City Art Museum, curated by Bruno Corà: the review traces the history of Alberto Burri’s intense relationship with the city since the late 1980s.

But the mosaic capital also hosts a new edition of the Ravenna Festival Trilogy, under the direction of maestro Riccardo Muti. From Dec. 16 to 22, at the Alighieri Theater, a triptych of Italian opera, from Bellini’s Norma (Dec. 16, 19) to Verdi’s Nabucco (Dec. 17, 20) ending with a gala dedicated to Verdi’s repertoire (Dec. 22).

In Faenza, on the other hand, a Gothic masterpiece is on display at the Pinacoteca Comunale until March 3, 2024: Pietro Lorenzetti’s Polyptych of the Blessed Humility. On loan from the Uffizi as part of the Uffizi Diffusi, the Polyptych shows episodes from the life and miracles of the Faentine saint: Saint Humility is a particularly significant figure for Faenza, and it is precisely in this year that the arrival of the Polyptych is intended to stand as a good omen and a sign of hope and recovery for all citizens after the flood that hit Romagna.

Finally, there is time until January 14, 2024 to visit the exhibition Strade e storie. Landscapes from Hokusai to Hiroshige, curated by Davide Caroli. Produced with the invaluable collaboration of the Museum of Oriental Art in Venice and loans from generous collectors, the exhibition displays more than 120 works to tell the story of the ukiyo-e woodcut technique and some of the most important masters who devoted themselves to it, such as Hokusai and Hiroshige.

Riccione

The retrospective dedicated to Robert Capa founder in 1947 of the Magnum Photos agency continues in Riccione, at Villa Mussolini. Open to the public until April 1, 2024, the exhibition features more than 100 black-and-white photographs by one of the most famous photojournalists of the 20th century.

On Dec. 20, Elio Germano and Teho Teardo bring to the stage Il sogno di una cosa, Pier Paolo Pasolini’s first narrative experiment, while on Dec. 29, at Cattolica’s Teatro della Regina, the spotlight will be on the Balletto di Milano, which will bring the magic of The Nutcracker to the stage.

Ferrara

At the Palazzo dei Diamanti in Ferrara, the anthological exhibition Achille Funi. A Master of the Twentieth Century between History and Myth, curated by Nicoletta Colombo, Serena Redaelli and Chiara Vorrasi and organized by the Ferrara Arte Foundation and the Art Museum Service of the Municipality of Ferrara. More than one hundred and twenty works, from important public and private, Italian and foreign collections, including the artist’s greatest masterpieces, to reread the entire creative parabola of one of the great painters of the 20th century.

In the Estense Castle, on the other hand, the exhibition Arrigo Minerbi. The True Ideal Between Art Nouveau and Classicism, which traces for the first time the entire span of Minerbi’s production by relocating it within the Italian artistic context of the early 20th century. Also through Dec. 26, the Estense Castle also hosts Linus - All Issues from 1965 to 2023, an exhibition that brings together for the first time the seven hundred original covers of the historic magazine from 1965, the year of its founding, to the present.

Until Dec. 31, the Casa Romei Museum and the National Archaeological Museum offer an art exhibition with works by Ferrara artists, including Alberto Pisa, Giovan Battista Crema, Achille Funi, Gianfranco Goberti, and Gaetano Previati, active between the 19th and 20th centuries. On the other hand, the art of knitting and crochet will be featured at the Unife Botanical Garden with Yarn Bombing.

To conclude, all-you-can-eat experiences at the Delta Antico Museum in Comacchio. On January 7, an original itinerary will be offered to visiting families to learn how to visit the museum while having fun. In Argenta not to be missed is the TuttoDonMinzoni exhibition: works, paintings, sculptures and mosaics to tell the story of his life.

And to discover the rich program of events for all tastes and ages, including art and culture, local traditions, relaxation and wellness, major events in the squares, traditional markets and nativity scenes, and initiatives for the little ones, visit www.capodannoromagna.it. Some of the most impressive events include the Fire of the Estense Castle to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Ferrara, the traditional Presepe della Marineria in Cesenatico, giant sand cribs in Rimini, the Christmas Torchlight Procession on the Water in Comacchio, and much more.

Christmas in Romagna: must-see events from Rimini to Ferrara

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