Expo Dubai: tourism Sicily takes center stage
At the Italian pavilion at the Dubai Expo, the Sicilian Region dropped aces from its sleeve by showcasing its treasures. Between tourism, culture and innovation, the Sicily of the future was thought about, starting of course with the immense cultural heritage of this land magic.
Sicily’s treasures on display at the World’s Fair
A totally interactive and immersive visual installation where Sicilian beauty can be shown to the whole world. The viewer finds himself immersed in Sicilian mosaics such as those of the Palatine Chapel of Palermo or of the Cathedral of Monreale, passing among the relics of the Neapolis Park in Syracuse. The Island took center stage at Expo Dubai with the Regional Day dedicated to the Island at the Italian Pavilion of the World Expo. “Sicily I believe belongs to the world. Its beauty, its history that we are also telling here at Expo I think it can really belong to everyone,” said Manlio Messina, councillor for Tourism, Sports and Entertainment also present in the UAE. “The beauty of Sicily I think is also the fact that we can cover millennia of history in beauty. We are very proud of this,” and “despite the pandemic, we try to tell the world about this beauty.”
The theater of Sicily: tradition advancing with a modern twist
Come on theaters of antiquity to that of the Pupi, by Bellini a Pirandello, Dubai also featured the history of Sicilian theater brought back into the limelight through an exhibition in the Italy Pavilion of theWorld’s Fair. The Orestiadi of Gibellina e the Puppet Opera, are two of the most significant realities of Sicilian theater. Also on display is a work by Arnaldo Pomodoro: Aeneas’s costume for Christopher Marlowe’s tragedy of “Dido, Queen of Carthage,” from 1986. Can theater still be a major player in 2022? Of course it does, because without history, one cannot communicate properly even in modernity. This year’s Expo gave the opportunity to promote Sicily in all its pivotal points, leaving nothing out and confirming the strategy that this Region will also confirm for the future that it also passes through the culture of theater.
Sicily after the pandemic. Where to start again?
The opportunity was golden. Promoting Sicily at a world event is the right way to restart after two years of pandemic emergency. A region that thrives on tourism, just like Sicily, has been greatly affected by the decline in attendance, especially of foreigners, who have a different purchasing power than the domestic tourist. Restarting from the cross-cutting offerings that Sicily has to offer: from the naturalistic to the scenic, from the wine and food sector to the historical and cultural, leveraging the affordability of a Region that in any case has established itself as protagonist of Italian tourism in 2021. “In Dubai, Sicily wanted to show the great possibilities it has as a land of hospitality.” stressed Sandro Pappalardo, responsible for Expo Dubai projects of the Sicilian regional government. “We are a fortunate region, because from the tourist point of view we really have everything a visitor can look for: art cities, small villages, a really interesting hinterland, our volcano Etna, our little islands that are paradises.” A true heritage, which became at Expo, worldwide and accessible to all.
Davide Donnarumma