Citings & Sightings of Dante's Works in Contemporary Culture
“The Smithsonian’s new memorial of African American history and culture is at once triumphant and crushing.” […]
“The descent and ascent achieve an effect similar to Dante’s harrowing journey in Inferno, and the walk upwards through Reconstruction, Redemption, the civil-rights movement, and into the present day is a reminder of the constant push and pull of horror and protest.” –Vann R. Newkirk II, The Atlantic, September 23, 2016
Contributed by Pamela Montanaro
“Come avrebbe reagito Dante Alighieri davanti all’Oulipo? Scopriamolo su Betwyll con #Stilnovo a settembre, preparandoci alla mostra ‘Il volto di Dante, per una traduzione contemporanea.’ […]
“Giocheremo a #Stilnovo sperimentando un approccio diverso, oltre al consueto: ogni giorno leggeremo e commenteremo una parte della poesia seguendo una delle regole elaborate dall’Oulipo e messe in pratica da Raymond Queneau nei suoi Esercizi di stile. Ogni giorno, i partecipanti potranno perciò trascurare nei loro tweet e twyll l’uso di particolari lettere (lipogramma), oppure riscrivere la strofa al passato remoto, o ancora commentarne il contenuto con un tweet formale e burocratico, facendo paragoni gastronomici o cromatici.”
“On Meet the Press this morning they were discussing whether Donald Trump has the temperament fit to be president. Alex Castellano was trying to make a comparison between Clinton and Trump as ‘old testament’ vs. ‘new testament’, and right around 41:30, Brooks disagrees and says it’s more like we’re in Dante’s Inferno in the seventh circle of hell…” –Allen Yu (Bowdoin, ’14)
Meet the Press, July 31, 2016
[…] “Illusion is a staple in all kinds of theater, but it is doubly vital to Paradiso, a suspense thriller that is also a game. Using a structure that borrows from Dante’s Divine Comedy, it has a vibe that, in Mr. Counts’s telling, owes something to Ridley Scott’s futuristic classic Blade Runner and the TV drama Mr. Robot.
“With a plot that involves a conspiracy, it’s a narrative-driven twist on the increasingly popular escape-room genre of participatory entertainment. According to convention, a group of people is closed in a room, or sequence of rooms, with a single collective aim: to solve a series of puzzles in under an hour. Their prize is liberty — which, it’s true, will come at the end of the hour either way.” […] –Laura Collins-Hughes, The New York Times, July 7, 2016
“PARADISO: Chapter 1 drops audience members (10 at a time) into a noir-ish nightmare that combines the surreal mystery of Stanley Kubrik with the stylized futuristic terror of Blade Runner into a one hour immersive theatrical Escape Room experience set in and inspired by the heart of New York’s Korea Town. Featuring a cast of dozens, highly designed sets with state-of-the-art special effects and the next generation of puzzles and mind-bending challenges, this immersive attraction is unlike anything audiences have ever seen or experienced.” –from the Paradiso: Chapter I FAQs
Contributed by Emma Pyle (Bowdoin, ’12)
All submissions will be considered for posting. Bibliographic references and scholarly essays are also welcome for consideration.
Coggeshall, Elizabeth, and Arielle Saiber, eds. Dante Today: Citings and Sightings of Dante’s Works in Contemporary Culture. Website. Access date.
