The Garbatella neighborhood celebrates 100 years since its first foundation stone
A rich series of events is set to run from the 18th of February to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Garbatella neighborhood. Since February 18th 1920, the year of the first foundation stone of the famous quartiere, Garbatella has become a neighborhood with a strong Roman identity. The idea was to relaunch the development of the area for working class families in the 1920’s, copying the British ‘Garden City’ by Ebenezer Howard, a utopian ideal where residents live in harmony with nature.
The celebrations kick off at 10.30am at Piazza Brin, where the foundation stone was laid, with an institutional ceremony that will see children from local schools and the Polizia Locale band involved. But other areas of the comune will be animated by a flash mob that will recall the centennial symbols of the Municipio. While at 6pm at Teatro Palladium, a presentation of Garbatella by Repubblica, followed by the Concert of the Orchestra of Piazza Vittorio, is in store.
During the course of the week, many initiatives will be in place, including an exhibition dedicated to Garbatella at Piazza Bartolomeo Romano; the permanent exhibition “La Garbatella – il moderno attraverso Roma” at Casa della Città; literary cultural meetings at Moby Dick cultural hub; guided tours of the Garbatella neighborhood; the themed school carnevale parade of Rodari “Garbatella 100 – Rodari 100”; and the organ concert at the church of Santa Galla.
While the weekend holds a series of events including video mapping at Piazza Bartolomeo Romano with food and drink events (21 & 22), the white night of the Garbatella shops with street art performances (22), a photography exhibition curated by Officine Fotografiche (21 & 22); and the carnival parade (22 & 23). The week-long celebrations will end with a grand concert at Piazza Sauli on Sunday.
But more initiatives are in store in occasion of the centenary, including the much-awaited Festival Caffeina at Garbatella “Storie, Culture, Eresie” from 17 to 20 September, where cultural debates discussing what moves the city and the public scene will be at the center of the festival.
February 18 – 23
various locations in Garbatella
