Argomenti trattati
From 8 to 12 April 2026, the Umbrian city of Foligno hosts a series of events that reconnect the town to one of its oldest cultural threads: the relationship with Dante Alighieri and the enduring influence of the Divine Comedy. This edition of the Giornate Dantesche frames that legacy through contemporary perspectives, inviting scholars, writers and citizens to revisit classical texts while exploring how they speak to present‑day concerns. The program is designed to be both scholarly and participatory, making the interplay between memory and innovation visible across the city’s historic venues.
The festival sits on a tangible historical anchor: on 11 April 1472 Foligno produced the editio princeps of the Divine Comedy, a pivotal moment in the transmission of Dante’s work when it entered the world of print. Today this heritage is preserved at the Museum of Printing in Palazzo Orfini, where early typographic artifacts and archival documents tell the story of the Orfini‑Numeister workshop. The presence of this material culture gives the festival a concrete link to the history of the book and to the rise of printed literature in Renaissance Europe.
Theme: Dante’s Paradise XI and the Franciscan echo
The 2026 edition pivots around the XI Canto of Paradise, where Dante, through the voice of St Thomas Aquinas, offers a complex tribute to Saint Francis of Assisi. Organizers chose this canto deliberately: the year marks the eighth centenary of the death of the saint, making reflections on poverty, reform and spiritual radicalism especially resonant. The festival encourages visitors to approach this canto not merely as medieval theology but as a living text, able to provoke questions about ecological ethics, social responsibility and forms of religious commitment in an age of rapid change.
Historical roots and the printing legacy
Foligno’s role in early printing history is a recurring motif of the program. The 1472 production of the Divine Comedy by the Orfini‑Numeister collaboration—including figures such as Johann Numeister, Emiliano Orfini and the notary Evangelista Angelini—represents a turning point in how texts circulated. The festival uses exhibits, guided tours and talks at Palazzo Orfini and the Museum of Printing to illustrate how the movement from manuscript to print broadened access to Dante and reshaped cultural life across Europe.
Program highlights and participants
The agenda mixes academic panels with public-facing formats. The opening address will be given by Andrea Riccardi, while the closing session features the medievalist Franco Cardini. Poets and novelists such as Antonella Anedda and Donatella Di Pietrantonio will contribute readings and conversations that place Dante in dialogue with contemporary writing. Long‑standing staples of the festival—like the Maratona Dantesca, a continuous reading of Paradise, and the book fair Pagine a corte hosted in the Court of Palazzo Trinci—invite both specialists and the general public to participate.
Events for readers and collectors
The editorial fair Pagine a corte transforms the palazzo’s courtyard into a meeting point for publishers, scholars and readers; workshops on early printing techniques and demonstrations of typographic tools complement panel discussions. These sessions highlight the materiality of books and the continuing importance of historical processes in shaping modern readership and cultural transmission.
Education, research and immersive activities
Youth engagement is central to the festival’s mission. The Commediando initiative brings secondary school students into direct contact with Dante’s text, asking them to reinterpret the XI Canto of Paradise through music, theater, visual arts and digital media. The aim is to transform passive reception into creative production: students stage public presentations that become an integral facet of the festival’s public program, demonstrating how classical works can catalyze fresh expression.
Workshops and medieval soundscapes
Hands‑on activities include labs that reconstruct aspects of medieval daily life—food, fashion and musical practice—while specialists in historical vocal techniques present the laudi francescane and other liturgical repertoires. These sessions use sound and practice to bring audiences closer to the cultural environment that shaped Dante’s imagination and the Franciscan milieu.
Outdoor and experimental offerings
An innovative element is the Dog Trekking set for 12 April, an itinerary between Trevi and the Fascia Olivata Assisi‑Spoleto that combines slow hiking, environmental education and contemplative moments inspired by Franciscan spirituality. This route exemplifies the festival’s interest in embodied, place‑based experiences that connect textual reflection with landscape and community.
Altogether, the Giornate Dantesche 2026 in Foligno propose a multifaceted encounter with Dante: scholarly depth, public performances, educational projects and outdoor activities form a program that honors a historic printing milestone while asking how medieval voices continue to speak into the present.