November 26, 27 and 28: what to do this weekend in Florence
In Florence the last weekend of November is full of events, some already with a Christmas flavor, ranging from art to shopping. Here are our tips.
Sport
The Asics Firenze Marathon is back this year after a year off and, as always, on the last Sunday of November, on November 28, 2021, the 37th edition of the event will take place.
Fairs and markets
From November 27th to December 5th, the exclusive Yoox “Secret Room” sale arrives in Florence in collaboration with Moscova District Market, leader in Italy for the organization of private fashion rooms. At the historic and iconic Fortezza Da Basso location, over 50,000 garments of clothing, shoes and bags for men, women and children of prestigious brands with bargains up to -90%.
After a year of pause and still the inability to travel freely shows in Japan, the Festival organized by Lailac offers the opportunity to experience the Rising Sun through dances, music, sounds, atmospheres, scents, tastes and authentic flavors.
Second weekend with the Christmas market in Piazza Santa Croce. The wooden houses will host delicacies from all over the world, from French biscuits to osso buco through to mulled wine, and interesting gift ideas in view of the approaching Christmas. HERE all the information.
In Empoli receive the events related to Christmas, the second weekend with the Christmas markets. In addition to shopping, an appointment with the Casa delle Mascotte, the Mattoncino Village and the magical world of Santa Claus.
In the square of the multifunctional center of San Donato, the lights of the wooden houses of the Christmas market will turn on. The 45 wooden houses will host sweets, gift ideas and “everything that makes … Christmas” explain the organizers; in particular you will find gift items, products and various food specialties.
Sunday 28 November Santo Spirito in Fiera returns. The event organized by Fiere Fivag Cisl Firenze will bring the stands with artistic handicraft goods and the market of various kinds to the Oltrarno square.
At the exhibition center in Empoli, the last weekend of November will take place “Empoli Vintage”. The market exhibition of objects, accessories, clothing, records and CDs. Ganzo Cultural Events is the organizer.
Festivals
The Tortello, truffle and ancient flavors of Mugello festival will take place in Vicchio until November 28th. From Thursday to Sunday for five weekends you can eat traditional dishes: potato tortelli, handmade tagliatelle with Tuscan ragù, truffle or porcini and again tripe, loin, lampredotto, onion soup, boiled boiled and then steak, rosticciana and roast suckling pig.
After the great success of the first edition, the Festival of wild boar and tortello is back from 25 November to 19 December: every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, including 8 December for both lunch and dinner.
Waiting for Christmas for young and old
All holidays and weekends from 13 November to 6 January at Villa Montalvo, in Campi Bisenzio, there will be the World of Santa Claus. During the event there will be a market, wooden toy workshops, entertainment shows and Santa Claus will meet the children and listen to their wishes. Among the attractions Minnie and Mickey Mouse, the Avengers team, the bedroom of Santa Claus and also his living room, the sleigh with the puppet reindeer, the inflatables, the train of wishes and the village of the elves with the post office; not to forget the Christmas market and the food area dedicated to Tyrol.
As already mentioned, two Christmas markets will start in Florence, the one in Piazza Santa Croce and the one inside the square of the San Donato multipurpose center. The Christmas air, however, does not stop there, but in the surroundings of Florence there are other events related to the future December holidays.
Appointment in Empoli with “The Magical World of Santa Claus”, the attraction that in 2019 transported over six thousand people, including children and families, to the fairytale environments of Santa’s house in the North Pole. In Empoli, in addition to the market and the World of Santa Claus, Casa delle Mascotte, the Mattoncino Village, will also kick off.
Magicians and goblins, street bands and traveling shows, ice skating and other attractions for all ages. And then Santa Claus, who will make his appearance on numerous occasions and in multiple performances, even during the same evening. From Saturday 20 November the “Magic of Christmas” will light up in Castelfiorentino, punctuated by the illuminations that will make the Christmas atmosphere even more evocative starting from 17.30.
Exhibitions and culture
In the Uffizi, among the rooms of Leonardo, Raffaello and Michelangelo, the temporary exhibition Lo Sfregio can be visited. The exhibition puts in dialogue the bust of Costanza Piccolomini Bonarelli, by Bernini, and the photos of Ilaria Sagaria with whom she recounted the pain and rebirth of women victims of acid attacks. HERE for all the information.
Those who love art this week can choose from numerous events: Jeff Koons is the protagonist of a large monograph at Palazzo Strozzi entitled “Shine”, in fact in the exhibition there are his most sparkling and mirrored works that allow the visitor to become a work himself. At the Strozzina, with free admission, there is Alter Eva an exhibition that through the works of six Italian artists, triggered, starting from a female point of view, a reflection on the future based on new principles of natural and social coexistence.
Jenny Saville, one of the greatest living painters and leading voice in the international art scene, exhibits her works in some of the most important museums in the city: Museo Novecento, Palazzo Vecchio Museum, Museo dell’Opera del Duomo, Museo degli Innocenti and Casa Buonarroti Museum.
The multimedia exhibition dedicated to Salvador Dalì (here you can see a preview of the exhibition) can be visited at the Cathedral of the Image in Piazza Santo Stefano al Ponte.
“Dante. The Eternal Poet” is the exhibition hosted in Santa Croce dedicated to the Supreme Poet, an evocative architectural video projection covers the internal walls and the dome of the Pazzi chapel with light.
“The admirable vision. Dante and the Comedy in the symbolist imagination” is the title of the second exhibition scheduled at the Bargello National Museum in the year in which the seventh centenary of the poet’s death occurs. The exhibition, curated by Carlo Sisi and Ilaria Ciseri, open to the public from 23 September 2021 to 9 January 2022, aims to investigate the artistic perception of the figure of Dante and the Divine Comedy perception in the literary and context between the 19th and 20th centuries.
For children we remember the Dinosaur exhibition in Vicchio: in a large green area you can admire life-size dinosaurs in a vast green area.
Perfect for children, but not only, is also the I LOVE LEGO exhibition at the Museo degli Innocenti in Florence, within the centennial setting of the Istituto degli Innocenti which has always been committed to welcoming and defending and promoting the rights of children and teenagers.
In Florence you can visit the Selfie Museum, a particular exhibition, organized like a labyrinth and consisting of over 50 rooms and more than 70 installations. Perfect for taking pictures and immersing yourself in the art conceived and created by over 400 artists.
The exhibitions to see in Tuscany
Theaters and shows
The 62nd Festival dei Popoli, the international documentary film festival, will be held in Florence (and online on the mymovies.it platform) from 20 to 28 November. The event presents the best of international documentary cinema in a program of 80 films, accompanied by numerous international and national guests.
Novecento di Baricco is back at the Puccini theater, interpreted by Eugenio Allegri, from 1994, with over 600 reruns and more than 250 thousand spectators for a monologue that has become a “cult” on the Italian scene.
Sunday 28 November at 4.45 pm “Aladdin and the magic lamp” will be staged with Centrale dell’Arte; the show is part of the Per grandi e Puccini festival.
From Monday 29 November to Wednesday 1 December at 9.00 pm “Eleganzissima” by and with Drusilla Foer will be staged; tickets are sold out on all three dates.
“The fleeting moment”, the cult film of 1989, arrives at the Niccolini theater. To play the role of the charismatic Professor Keating – in the film the late Robin Williams – is the actor Ettore Bassi.