Como: “Europe in verse”, the 13th edition of the international poetry festival

Como: “Europe in verse”, the 13th edition of the international poetry festival.

“Europe in verse”, International Poetry Festival organized by House of Poetry of Como and directed by Laura Garavaglia, celebrates its thirteenth edition with the participation of poets of national and international importance in the setting of Villa Gallia in Como and, for the first time, in that of Villa Sormani Marzorati Uva.

“Poetic happiness” is the main theme, the common thread of the upcoming edition, and is told thus by Laura Garavaglia, creator of the event: “Precisely in relation to this dramatic and complex moment, poetry as the maximum expression of creativity and sublimation of the best energies of the human being, but also as a privileged place of "inner happiness" rarely reachable by other means. Thanks to the poems and testimonies of the authors who will participate, coming not only from Europe, but from various countries around the world, the public will in particular be sensitized to reflect on the hypotheses of a utopia of Happiness which today seems to be increasingly distant and which perhaps can be sought on levels other than those relating to economic and public success". Like every year, the anthology of the Europa in Versi Festival will be published by Stefano Donno's Quaderni del Bardo Edizioni, now an editorial partner and member of the Casa della Poesia of Como for more than four years. The publisher Stefano Donno declares: “I am happy to announce that I Quaderni del Bardo Edizioni, under my direction, will once again produce the anthology of the Festival “Europa in Versi 2023”. It is not only a privilege, but also a great responsibility to be chosen to edit the most representative voices of international poetry. The Festival, organized in a professional and impeccable manner by the Casa della Poesia di Como directed by Laura Garavaglia, is an event of great depth and relevance in our culture. We are extremely honored to work with well-known exponents of Italian poetry and poetic criticism, who truly know how to grasp the subtle nuances and emotions contained in each poem. Europa in Versi 2023 has allowed and still allows users to have a clear picture of what the most interesting trends in world poetry are, and we are fully ready to face this challenge together with the President Laura Garavaglia, the House of Poetry of Como and all the public and private bodies that make this Festival unique."

The Festival comes to life on Saturday 20 May: after the meeting with the students ofUniversity of Insubria, in the fascinating setting of Villa Gallia, overlooking the first basin of Lake Como, the meeting with international and Italian poets begins, with an introduction by Roberto Galaverni (Corriere della Sera).

The guests come from different countries: from Vietnam Kieu Bich Hau, poet, narrator and journalist, defends women's rights in Vietnam in her works; she is the editor of Romania's NEUMA magazine, Russia's HUMANITY magazine, winner of numerous national and international literature prizes; from South Korea Kooseul Kim, Professor Emerita of English Literature at Hyupsung University, who received mention from the Vietnam Writers Association and is President of the Changwon KC International Literary Prize and of the Organizing Committee of the KC & KS World Poetry Festival, Dongho Choi, also a literary critic, scholar of Eastern and Western literature and has received important recognition; he is also President of the Society of Korean Poets; Ko Doohyun, journalist from the main national newspaper in Seoul; The Consul General of the Republic of Korea, Mr. Kang Hyung Shik; from Russia Julia Pikalova, graduated in Literature from the University of St. Petersburg and in Business Administration from the California State University, came to poetry very late; from the United States William Wolak, photographer, collage artist, his poems, whose main theme is eros, have appeared in over one hundred magazines; from Colombia Carlos Velasquez Torres, born in Bogota, is also a translator, musician and academic, and today works in New York (where he is co-director of the Americas Poetry Festival); from Hungary Attila Balazs, whose works have been translated into 20 languages, and has been invited to various literary festivals in various countries around the world; from Kosovo Jeton Kelmendi, professor at AAB University College and active member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts in Salzburg, Austria.

Participating from Italy are Emilio Coco, Giuseppe Bova, Deborah Zingariello, Laura Capra.

The day will end with the award ceremony for the winners Europe in verse and prose prize, the poet is president of the jury Milo De Angelis and the professor Gianmarco Gaspari, professor at the University of Insubria and literary critic.

Sunday 21 May, in the morning we propose a walk with reading with the guest poets of the "Europa in versi" festival and with the participation of the public, in poetic places of historical interest: on the occasion of the two thousandth anniversary of the birth of Pliny the Elder, in front of the Duomo, on whose facade the statue of the great writer stands out, excerpts from the “Naturalis Historia” will be read (in collaboration with “Sentiero dei Sogni” and the guide of Pietro Berra).

In the afternoon, we continue and conclude the day with a reading of the poets in the park of Villa Sormani Marzorati Uva, in Missaglia (LC).