Videos, radios, cianfrusaglies
"Lasciate ogni tristezza voi ch’entrate”
Rome, MACRO Testaccio - La Pelanda
December 19th, 2015 - April 3rd, 2016
Year 2015 marks the thirtieth anniversary of Quelli della notte, one of the Renzo Arbore ‘s
"inventions” that had a great impact in the history of Italian culture and entertainment. Since
December 19th, 2015 to April 3rd, 2016, the exhibition spaces of La Pelanda at Macro Testaccio
host a major exhibition dedicated to Renzo Arbore, who celebrates the 50th year of his
amazing career, his television and radio programs - which have so deeply characterized TV
history and traditions of our country - his friends, his discoveries. A section is dedicated to his
musical choices and to the concerts of Orchestra Italiana, the Swing Maniacs and, before that,
the Barilla Boogie Band. Another section tells about his stunning collection of objects and
memorabilia, but also about his friends, his journeys, his continuous support to the no-profit Lega
del Filo d'Oro and his sensitivity towards the less fortunate, his irresistible human experience and,
finally, his clever and ironic contribution to Italian culture.
At the exhibition entrance, the visitors find the inscription: Lasciate ogni tristezza voi ch’entrate
- Let all sadness ye who enter here -. Inside, in a surprising show, are displayed the objects
that witness Arbore's extraordinary adventure: record sleeves, unlikely collections, vintage
radios, strange ties, plastic items collected in an almost maniac way, memorabilia from his
journeys, musical instruments, scenic elements which characterized his television broadcasts.
Moreover, a relevant part is dedicated to the audio and video records performed by Arbore,
from Quelli della notte to the concerts of Orchestra Italiana, from Bandiera Gialla and Alto
Gradimento to his movies and even his adv spots, in a path divided into "stations" corresponding
to Renzo’s fascinations: Music, America, Collections and Plastic, Cinema, Journeys, TV, City
and Friends, Fashion and Design, Radio and, last but not least, Lega del Filo d'Oro. In this
way, as in a chamber of wonders, every object, every sound and every image tell a story about
one of many moments in Renzo Arbore’s life , but also about a piece of Italian history and Italian
culture.
In this project, besides Renzo Arbore, many of his colleagues are involved, who were and still are
close to him on several occasions: Alida Cappellini and Giovanni Licheri set up the stage of
most of Arbore’s shows and have now designed an exhibition able not only to give value to what
is displayed, but capable to welcome visitors as if they would be at Renzo’s home. Sabina
Arbore and Adriano Fabi took care of the documentation and research materials. The direction
and movie editing was managed by Luca Nannini.
Promoted by Roma Capitale - Capitolina Superintendence to Cultural Heritage, the exhibition
is produced by Civita in partnership with RAI and with the contribution of RAI Teche. Media
partners: RAI 1, RAI 2, RAI 3, RAI Culture, TGR, Radio RAI 1, RAI Radio 2.
The exhibition will be part of a series of events that will be planned together with MACRO.
The exhibition is accompanied by Renzo Arbore’s book "E se la vita fosse una jam session?
Fatti e misfatti di quello della notte", edited by Lorenza Foschini, published by Rizzoli. For the
first time, Renzo Arbore talks about himself in a book of memories, meetings and objects, on the
edge of his fascinations: music, radio, TV, collecting. A four DVD collection will also be made by
Rai.com and distributed by RAI Cinema. The DVD retrace the entire Renzo Arbore’s career and
are available in preview at the exhibition bookshop. Finally, a wide choice of objects inspired by
Arbore's colourful and cheerful iconographic universe is offered to the public. The revenues from
the sale of some products offered by Renzo Arbore and Gallo will be donated to the Lega del Filo
d'Oro.