The cyrcus

In the foyer of the Bibiena Theatre a great work by Ferruccio Bolognesi is visible. Bolognesi, native of Mantua, exhibited in Italy and Europe from the sixties of the twentieth century onwards. At the time his style was defined naȉf; today these works have won many awards and are viewed as examples of a harmonious surrealist style. Bolognesi also had the opportunity to work on numerous musical and opera productions as a costume and set designer, some of which were staged at the Bibiena Theatre. These works were the result of the fruitful relationship with Claudio Gallico, conductor, musicologist and leading Italian Monteverdi scholar. The work shown here, which represents a group of players, and which reflects the interest of Bolognesi for enchanted and playful aspects of life, was created for a restaurant near Mantua and was immediately praised by Cesare Zavattini. The owner of the restaurant, Guido Guidetti, nicknamed “Moustache”, donated the drawing to MAC, Mantova Arte Contemporanea in 2012.