Italian Studies at UCONN

03/25/2026

News from UConn. You might be interested in this event. After all, Leonardo Fibonacci was from Pisa. As a mathematician, he popularized the Indo–Arabic numeral system in the Western world primarily through his "Liber Abaci" (Book of Calculation).

03/02/2026

BRING ALONG YOUR FAVORITE (ITALIAN) POEM AND YOUR BEST FRIEND(S). COFFEE AND COOKIES FOR EVERYONE!

01/29/2026

̶i̶n̶Visible. The Women Who Pioneered Cinema-

As cinema took its very first steps, women were already there, shaping its journey… 🎥

From November 14 to January 30 a momentous exhibition will take place at the Italian Cultural Institute.

You can visit it from Monday to Friday from 9.30am to 6pm. ✨

The opening is on November 13 at 4.30pm.
Senator Lucia Borgonzoni, Undersecretary of State at the Italian Ministry of Culture, and Antonio Saccone, President of Cinecittà, will be visiting us on this occasion.

Link in bio! ☺️

12/01/2025

11/30/2025

The Bread and Roses strike. A piece of Italian-American history

The Lawrence Textile Strike, also known as the Bread and Roses Strike, was a strike of immigrant workers in Lawrence, Massachusetts, in 1912 led by the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). Prompted by a two-hour pay cut corresponding to a new law shortening the workweek for women, the strike sprea...

11/20/2025

We are very pleased to announce that Chiara Avallone successfully defended her Master's degree thesis, a comparison between narrative structures in Marco Polo's Il Milione and in contemporary Italian vlogger Nicolò Balini. Her advisory committee comprised Professors Andrea Celli (major advisor), Philip Balma, and Tina Chiappetta-Miller. Tanti complimenti, Chiara!

11/20/2025

Chef Danilo Mongillo has seen his new-world Italian restaurants, Strega New Haven and Strega Milford, surge in popularity after the former was named one of the best Italian restaurants in the world.

But now, Mongillo and Italian restaurateurs across the state are facing a new and unprecedented 107% tariff on Italian-made pasta.

While Strega makes most of its pasta fresh in-house, Mongillo said the new tariffs would affect his dry pasta, which makes up about a quarter of the pasta served at the restaurant.

https://www.ctpost.com/news/article/strega-new-haven-italian-restaurant-pasta-tarriffs-21182452.php

11/20/2025

Don’t miss the Northeast Theatrical Premiere of The Great Ambition (La grande ambizione, Andrea Segre, 2025) At CINESTUDIO THEATER, Friday, November 21 – Sunday, Nov 23

The great Elio Germano stars as Enrico Berlinguer in Andrea Segre’s moving and intelligently plotted biopic, nominated for 15 Donatello Awards. The film follows Berlinguer between 1973 and 1978 — as the then-leader of the Italian Communist Party, Berlinguer finds himself caught by the tides of history and the political convulsions of the 1970s. Germano, who took home the award for best actor at the Rome Festival, is excellent as a man who, in scenes both spectacularly public and intimately personal, gracefully bears the weight of the world on his shoulders while trying to preserve the integrity of his convictions.

Cinestudio is a not-for-profit independent film theater located at Summit Street and College Terrace on the campus of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut (300 Summit St, Hartford, CT 06106). Founded in 1970 by a group of students at Trinity, Cinestudio has become one of the most highly respected arthouse cinemas in the United States, with a long-standing reputation for its wide diversity of programing, and for legendary projection and sound quality.

Go to cinestudio.org for more info.

11/11/2025

Wonderful "Ora italiana" today. Lovers of the Italian language and culture from any walk of life and any region of the world. Very cosmopolitan community. And signora Maria cooked for us two regional holiday specialties: panettone molisano (lupacchioli style) and gli struffoli pontelandolfesi (very different from the Neapolitan ones: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Struffoli). What a treat. And a very festive afternoon. Thank you all!!!

10/20/2025

The expression 'futtitinni' runs deep in the Sicilian culture.It's a mantra for not getting bogged down by the small stuff and instead focusing on what truly...

10/16/2025

DURLING PRIZE FOR K12 TEACHERS OF DANTE

Please encourage your Dante-loving colleagues to apply for the Durling Prize, an award recognizing excellence in the teaching of Dante’s life, time, and works by educators in North American secondary schools and named in memory of our esteemed late colleague Robert M Durling. The deadline for this year’s competition is October 31.

About the Durling Prize
Established in 2016 in memory of our late colleague Robert M. Durling, this award has recognized excellence in the teaching of Dante’s life, time, and works by educators working in North American secondary schools (i.e., high school and middle school). Beginning in 2023, the prize can also be awarded to encourage school teachers to develop courses or incorporate significant modules on Dante in their courses. Teachers may apply on the basis of a course or course component already taught or on one they intend to teach within the next two academic years. The prize winner receives a monetary award in the amount of $1,000.

Submission Guidelines
Submissions should include a brief resume and a cover letter that highlights the instructor’s engagement with Dante to date as well as detailed plans for future incorporation of relevant material into the curriculum. Additional materials such as an annotated syllabus, detailed assignment descriptions, recordings of class instruction or examples of digital and other instructional aids can also be submitted to strengthen the dossier. Applicants will need one letter of support sent via email from a student or colleague familiar with the project and the pedagogical approach of the instructor and who can attest to its success and/or potential for success.

Submissions must be received electronically at [email protected] by October 31, and will be judged by the Prize Committee of the Society with the winner announced in the fall of each year. Candidates who didn't receive the award remain eligible to participate in future competitions.