IN PERSON/LIVE
SEGAL THEATRE, 365 FIFTH AVE @ 34 STR.
MONDAY, DEC. 11 - 6:30 PM
LIVE STREAM ON HOWLROUND: CLICK HERE
Mattia Torre is like Eduardo De Filippo—a great investigator of our miseries and above all reminds us that certain miseries can be loved
(PAOLO SORRENTINO, OSCAR-WINNING ITALIAN DIRECTOR)
Join us on Dec 11th at the Segal Center for the opening evening of the Italian Playwrights Project 4th edition, discovering the work of one of the most significant contemporary Italian playwrights, screenwriters, and directors: the late Mattia Torre.
Mattia Torre (June 10, 1972 – July 19, 2019) was an Italian playwright, screenwriter, and director born in Rome. A co-founder of Compagnia del Cianti, Torre earned acclaim for his contributions to theater and television, notably his role in creating the popular series "Boris." Recognized for his versatile talents, Torre made a lasting impact on Italian culture through his writing and directorial achievements, leaving behind a significant legacy in the entertainment industry.
The reading of excerpts from the plays, translated by Anthony Shugaar, will be directed by Kristin Leahey. Followed by a panel with Italian theatre critic Graziano Graziani, translator Antony Shugaar, Valeria Orani, and others. Moderated by Frank Hentschker.
Graziano Graziani is a theatre critic, writer, and journalist. He’s a cohost of Fahrenheit on Radio 3 Rai and he has written for numerous papers (favorite credits are Lo Straniero, Internazionale.it, the blog of Minimum Fax minima & moralia, and the new Treccani webzine, il Tascabile). He collaborates with Rai 5 for which he created many documentaries on contemporary theatre. He has published various books, the last of which was Atlante delle Micronazioni (2015) by Quodlibet editor. He curates a blog named Stati d’eccezione.
Antony Shugaar is a writer and a translator from the Italian and the French. He’s translated dozAntony Shugaar is a writer and a translator from the Italian and the French. He is the American editor of FMR Magazine. He’s translated dozens of articles for the New York Review of Books and close to forty novels for Europa Editions. He has translated many novels that were awarded Italy’s highest literary award, the Strega Prize (the 2011 winner, Edoardo Nesi’s Story of My People, Resistance Is Futile, by Walter Siti [2013], Francesco Piccolo’s Wanna Be Like Everyone [2104], Ferocity, by Nicola Lagioia [2015], and the 2016 winner, The Catholic School, by Edoardo Albinati). In the realm of Italian noir, aside from some of the work of Gianfranco Carofiglio, he's also translated books by many of the leading figures in the field: Massimo Carlotto, Sandrone Dazieri, Maurizio de Giovanni, the late Giorgio Faletti, Antonio Manzini, and others. He has also translated several books by Gianni Rodari, the eminent Italian children’s author, including “Telephone Tales,” which was awarded the 2021 Batchelder Award by the American Library Association. He’s received two National Endowment of the Arts fellowships. He translated two books in the W. W. Norton Collected Works of Primo Levi, published in 2015. His translation of Hollow Heart by Viola Di Grado was shortlisted for both the PEN and the ALTA Italian translation awards. He has translated TV series and movies for HBO, Netflix, and Amazon, including work by Paolo Sorrentino and Luca Guadagnino.
Valeria Orani For over thirty years, Valeria Orani has produced live theatre in both non-profit and commercial settings, a vocation which led in 2003 to the creation of 369gradi, the first Italian organization devoted to supporting, promoting, and managing young companies producing innovative theatre. Over time 369gradi has expanded its activities to embrace performance art and contemporary culture more broadly. Together with Frank Hentschker, she created the highly successful, award-winning, and influential ITALIAN AND AMERICAN PLAYWRIGHTS PROJECT