Our readers’ club in Venice: Feb. 6th, 7th, 8th

The beautiful deconsecrated church of Santa Maria Ausiliatrice ((Castello 454, via Garibaldi; Venice, IT) comes back to glory finally and purposely inhabited and used by locals, tourists and artists who are settled or cross the Castello Sestiere. On the evenings of February 6, 7, 8 2015 the former church will be transformed by Slow Words in a a shared dining-ballroom where special communal dinner will take place: each of one will be ruled by a flavour, a colour and its words, readings, video screenings, and of course carnival dressing up: the citizenship is invited to join by cooking according to the evening theme in their homes and then sharing in the beautiful and set-designed space the moment of food tasting among unknown people and potential new friends.
Slow Words, the online literary magazine, will also offer a tasting table with wines and food for those wanderers who are not equipped with their own meal but want to join the same the district dinner – the first event of this kind that takes place in the city of Venice, within the occasion – and in the official roster of Carnevale di Casteo 2015 (Venice district of Castello Carnival Festivities).
The communal dinners record a quite extended tradition in other countries, especially in the Anglo-Saxon ones. They find home quite often in public buildings – in former churches, or ballrooms but also sometimes in restaurants – and have the double aim to provide sociality for neighbours or for single persons. Invited people are not knowing each other but they sit one beside the other and exchange tasting moments by maybe celebrating the start of a friendship…
Human relation and sociability, beside to easily lower conflicts and tendencies to pugnacity, make room for the mutual help. And Slow Words thinks this is a perfect social time within the Carnival of Venice, made quite often only of very expensive and precluded private parties.
On Friday February 6, 2015 the Recalls communal dinner will take place in the former church of Santa Maria Ausiliatrice. As happens in the Recherche for a small buttered biscuit – a flavour, a recipe or a smell are able to take us back to some far episodes that are still crucial in our life today. Invited citizens are requested to share a special recall by cooking something meaningful for them and tasting it on the lavish table Slow Words will dress for them, all dressed in white! Will the communal dinners tablemates be ready to share their recalls also in…verses? In the meanwhile, Venetian and not djs will offer a sonic carpet going from ‘80ies to ‘90ies and house music.
On Saturday February 7, 2015, the dinner party Purple and Spell makes all read, amaranth and strong and spiced flavours. Tablemates are requested to choose their reddish tone for a Carnival dress and dare with edible masks to eat with eyes and the mouth! This time, as it suits for a dinner in red, romantic ballades of every age will fill the dinner.
On Sunday February, 8 , 2015 with Play the odd! Venice will host the first (salty or sweet) pie-game to have been held in a deconsecrated church! Tablemates are invited to design and make a take-away pie, to exchange and to play/contend at the long multitasking Slow Words dining table, composing words emotions and new meetings. Long or skimpy, they are also invited to dress the most extravagant ever. In terms of dominant colour, Slow Words suggests the electric blue! Musically speaking, Play the odd! will be a triumph of rock&roll (with Funcis DJ Sert).

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