From opera to Italian cuisine Unesco site, Italy united with a wine glass in global spotlight

Imagine one evening when all of Italy sits down at the same table, with a glass of wine in hand, among the 11,000 spectators of the Arena di Verona, with 1,000 honored guests dining together in Piazza Bra for a classic Italian dinner. Among them, there are Unesco delegates, world-class artists, Arena workers, and ambassadors from many countries (from Albania to Australia, Austria to Belgium, Bulgaria to Burkina Faso, Colombia to the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia to Greece, Grenada to Equatorial Guinea, as well as Kenya, Liberia, Luxembourg, Mongolia, Oman, Nigeria, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, the Czech Republic, the Dominican Republic, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Togo, Turkey, Ukraine, Hungary, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe, just to name a few of them), along with millions of Italians in their homes, connected via television and worldwide broadcast. All this unfolds between an aria sung by Plácido Domingo or Vittorio Grigolo, a piece of the great Neapolitan song tradition performed by voices such as Massimo Ranieri, Sal Da Vinci, Gigi D’Alessio, or Serena Rossi, or by the “priestess of rock” Patti Smith, performing a choral and orchestral version of her timeless “Because the Night”. And, from this setting, against the backdrop of one of the world temples of music, a symbol of Verona and a Unesco World Heritage site, two Italian excellences recognized as intangible heritage, Italian cuisine and the “art of bel canto” singing, will jointly launch the candidacy of the “Classical Neapolitan Song” for Unesco recognition. The hope is to further enrich Italy leading record of Unesco sites (61, more than any other country) and intangible cultural heritage elements. All this is “Champions of the World - Italy Loves Unesco”, a major event broadcast in prime time on Rai 1 on June 5th (starting at 9:30 p.m.). It is the result of collaboration between the Ministries of Culture, Agriculture, Tourism, Foreign Affairs, and Sport & Youth, together with the Arena di Verona Foundation and with the support of Ita - the Italian Trade Agency and Vinitaly-Veronafiere. The event will be hosted by Milly Carlucci, the “queen” of prime time on the flagship network, alongside Paolo Belli, for a unique occasion celebrating the excellence of made in Italy.
“This event was created for three reasons  - explained Minister of Tourism Gianmarco Mazzi, today during the presentation press conference at the Ministry of Culture in Rome (where WineNews interviewed him) -  first, to celebrate Italy leading position with 61 Unesco sites and to remind ourselves, boosting a self-esteem we sometimes lack that we are the world greatest cultural power, and we want to affirm it. Secondly, we will celebrate two recognitions achieved under the Meloni government: the art of opera singing and Italian cuisine as Unesco heritage. And from Verona we will launch the candidacy of the ‘Classical Neapolitan Song,’ with the hope of achieving recognition by the end of 2028. Our goal is also to support “root tourism” which, beyond Naples alone, has a potential pool of 74 million people: second- or third-generation Italians living abroad who, seeing Italy beauty on television, may feel a stronger desire to return. This aligns with my vision of promoting a type of tourism and culture that can also generate tangible economic benefits for local territories, as already happens with wine and food tourism”.
“Rai plays a primary role, which is to unite the Nation also through awareness of its cultural excellence, such as music and cuisine  - added Minister of Agriculture Francesco Lollobrigida -  Italy must be central in the world of culture, art, enterprise, and, of course, food and wine. We need to paint a positive picture again, telling not only what doesn’t work, as it is right, but also what is good. The whole world asks this of us: there is a hunger and thirst for Italy, expressed both by the many foreigners who visit and the many Italians living abroad. We must be aware of this and turn the important intangible achievements we have obtained into concrete results. We are champions in music and in cuisine, where there is, of course, a gastronomic aspect, but that is not the core of our Unesco candidacy. What has been recognized is our conviviality, our Italian way of being together, which goes beyond nourishment. Conviviality and our way of socializing are what matter, also in connection with local territories. Our nation is diversity, made up of distinct identities, a country born from the blending of many peoples throughout history, which we have harmonized virtuously. In the cuisine nomination dossier, we included images of Giuseppe Verdi, a symbol of patriotic music and also a wine producer; Dante Alighieri, famous for his “Divine Comedy” and for being the first to speak of Italy as a united nation; Leonardo da Vinci, the Genius (and also a wine producer); and Rita Levi-Montalcini, an extraordinary woman who loved good food and drink and wasn’t ashamed of it, it is telling that she lived to the age of 103. Furthermore, our cuisine is deeply tied to the territory, sometimes even more famous than the monuments themselves. Think of beautiful Ascoli, with its magnificent square but better known worldwide for its olives, or Montalcino, with its stunning landscapes made globally famous by Brunello wine. I could give hundreds of other examples. And all of this we will celebrate together in Verona”.
“It will be a major television event  - commented Milly Carlucci (whom we interviewed), following video messages of support from the great Renzo Arbore, who will oversee the work on the dossier for the candidacy of the “Classical Neapolitan Song”, and from Patti Smith -  for us, it will be an evening dedicated to emotion and beauty, in which we will bring the heart of Italy to the world, both from inside the Arena and beyond, with Paolo Belli telling the extraordinary story of cuisine and flavors, which are themselves forms of art and emotion.
It will be, in its own way, a historic moment, which we will celebrate with a great toast: not only with the 11,000 people in the Arena, all holding a glass in their hands (as already anticipated in an interview with WineNews by the Minister of Agriculture, Francesco Lollobrigida), but with the entire audience at home, whom we will invite to raise a glass, because we all have a bottle of wine at home to take part in a great national toast and share so much beauty together. It will be an important moment for all of us Italians”.
On stage, during the final notes of the show, there will therefore be the record-breaking grand toast by Vinitaly, with glasses raised live on television by the entire audience in the Amphitheater, and not only: “we will contribute to a unique, special, distinctive event  - comments Federico Bricolo, president of Veronafiere -  and standing alongside the Arena Foundation and the institutions in a celebration dedicated to Italy Unesco heritage means jointly enhancing some of the country greatest expressions. Wine is fully part of this, with Vinitaly, which also represents a powerful vehicle for promoting our food and wine culture and our territories. It shouldn’t be forgotten - still explains Bricolo - that it was precisely at Vinitaly, in 2023, that, together with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the candidacy of Italian cuisine as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity was announced with a toast”.
It has to be celebrated, as in our history, as it has always been and always will be, with a glass of wine raised in a toast.