La Dolce Vita

Photography by Angie Myers

models Brett McAnney & Gabriella Bianchi at T?H?E Artist Agency

Hair & Makeup by Lori Pressman at T?H?E Artist Agency

Wardrobe by Chaza Betenjane at T?H?E Artist Agency

Production Assistants Haley Sanchez & Lexi Rodencal

Location Via Umbria, Georgetown

This issue of The Georgetowner celebrates the Italian lifestyle: La Dolce Vita. Perchè adesso (why now)? No special reason needed; Italy looms large in American lives.

The history, cultures and fates of our two countries are intertwined, both in hugely important ways and in matters that we take for granted, things that have taken up permanent residence in our hearts, minds and habits.

What would opera be without the giant presence of the Italian composers, whose works warm the genre with boisterous energy and passion? What would
cineastes do if they weren’t able to argue about Fellini and Antonioni? And where would American dining be without pizza and pasta and — since we’ve become more sophisticated — risotto, agnolotti and crudo (a term, if not a dish, said to have been invented by restaurateur Joe Bastianich)?
American history begins in the 17th century; in Italy, they start before Anno Domini and run through Rome — the Republic, the Empire and the center of the Roman Catholic Church — and the Renaissance, the Baroque and all those periods from art history.

Columbus was in the employ of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, but he was a citizen of Genoa, and it was a Florentine fellow named Amerigo for whom the New World was named. Centuries later, waves of Italian immigrants brought their innumerable talents, contributing to America’s progress through their own striving.

Italians have tread a remarkable path here, becoming Americans without giving up the essential nature of who they are and who their ancestors were. They replicate their communal gatherings and remind us of the presence of the church in their history and lives. And every such occasion is replete with tradition and with the celebration of the familial ties that bind.

Here in D.C., Holy Rosary Church, the “national Italian parish,” was established in 1913. Statues of Dante, Michelangelo, Verdi and Marconi adorn the façade of its Casa Italiana, where language classes and cultural programs are held. On April 3, Holy Rosary will host a Festa della Vendemmia wine tasting and a mass in honor of Maria SS. Annunziata, organized by the Society of Fiumendinisi of
Messina, Sicily.

To stay connected all year round to Italian events (and perhaps learn the language), visit the websites of the Casa Italiana at casaitalianaschool.org, the Istituto Italiana di Cultura at

iicwashington.esteri.it/IIC_Washington/it and the Italian Cultural Society of Washington, D.C., at
italianculturalsociety.org.