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Enthusiasts interested to learn the moves of historical Italian dancing as well as the Venetian court life can make use of lessons that will be provided at The Diplomat Radisson Blu Hotel, Residence & Spa on Tuesday and February 8.
The classes are being offered to attendants of the first Italian Grand Ball to be staged in the kingdom on February 10. Organised by the Italian Embassy, the hotel will host the Ball as part of the third annual 'Festival Italiano 2011' to be held until February 11.
Participants will be taught a range of dances including the minuet, contradances, baroque as well as 18th Century waltzes evoking the glamour and charm of life in Italy during the Renaissance period and beyond.
The event is organised by Ludica Antiqua who promise to make it a success.
Italian Ambassador to Bahrain Enrico Padula said: "We are very pleased with our festival programme this year and the opportunity to allow Bahrain residents to experience something of our past.
"Modern Italy attracts people for its fashion, architecture and sports, but we wanted to convey some of its history this year and what better than the Renaissance - a turning point for us due to the end of the Middle Ages and increasing interaction with Arab scientists, philosophers and so forth."
The Ambassador explained that he hoped the Grand Ball would become a regular feature in Bahrain's social calendar with guests interacting with characters in period costume, entertained by live music and Italian opera singers in addition to exquisite Italian cuisine.
Tickets for the Grand Ball are priced at BD25. It will be followed by an opera night, open to the public, on February 11 at the Cultural Hall in Manama. Entitled 'Venice: the Music Reflects in the Sea' some of the Grand Ball dancers and singers will perform live to the public.
As part of the festival, an exhibition featuring six paintings dating back to the Renaissance period were flown in from Italy and is being displayed at the Bahrain National Museum.
The collection which showcases the works of famous 16th century painters from two regions of the north of Italy, Lombardy and Veneto, will be the first of its kind in the Gulf and is expected to attract a significant number of art admirers.
Well-known names such as Tiziano, Jacopo Tintoretto, Paris Bordon, Sebastiano Del Piombo, Giulio Campi e Pietro Della Vecchia will also be displayed for the first time in the kingdom at the Bahrain National Museum from February 3.
The paintings are portraits of historic personalities including a noblewoman and a painter and are considered a landmark work in the history of figurative arts in general.
The festival will also include other cultural and social moments such as featuring recent releases by Italian directors at the Dana Mall Cinema and the Bahrain Cinema Club from Sunday as well as events dedicated to Italian cuisine with a special presentations by renowned chefs.
