what to do on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 December
Weekend in early December that ends the Immaculate Conception, with many Romans who experience the city for a few days as tourists immersed in the charm of alleys and squares illuminated for Christmas.
The weekend lights up the city with many markets and also various art proposals, with museums also open to exhibitions dedicated to Christmas and with theatrical performances among the most loved by the general public. Lights also on in the villages where, between a tour of the markets and a stop among the attractions of the Christmas villages, you can have a few hours or a whole day of leisure and relaxation outside the city. Even the walks in the city can become a tour between exhibitions of artistic nativity scenes and guided tours in neighborhoods rich in history and traditions.
What to do in Rome on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 December
Under Bernini’s Colonnade, the International Nativity Scene Exhibition returns, with 126 works from all over the world. Time for exhibitions, such as the one dedicated to Dante’s Inferno on display at the Scuderie del Quirinale or the exhibition at the Chiostro del Bramante with the works of the English street artist Banksy where you can also discover many unpublished works by the artist. Time also for Christmas Villages, in the city and surroundings, where you can spend a few hours with the magic of shows and plays of light. Like at the Fantastic Castle of Santa Claus in the district of Length, or in the village of Santa Severa at the Village of Wonders. December also gives great returns, with the musical Mamma Mia! That reopens the theatrical season of the Sistina Theater. A program full of events not to be missed, in these other two days of the long Immaculate Conception.
Christmas markets and villages in Rome: all those not to be missed
Here, then, are the events not to be missed on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 December in and around Rome.
The exhibition of the 100 nativity scenes in the Vatican
This year is the fourth edition of the International Exhibition of Nativity Scenes that can be visited under Bernini’s Colonnade in St. Peter’s Square. 126 works from many nations of the world. Works by numerous artisans, depicting the nativity scene, in the varied representations that the imagination of the cribs expresses and is realized in each artifact. [TUTTE LE INFORMAZIONI]
Prose and Musical at the theater
The theatrical season at the Sistina has restarted a few days ago and the curtain has reopened on one of the most beloved show and musicals “Mamma Mia!”. With a cast of over 30 artists and the live orchestra directed by Maestro Emanuele Friello, the public will be able to let off steam to the captivating rhythm of the famous hit of ABBA. The show “Men from the sidewalk” staged at the Teatro Lo Spazio is on stage until Sunday. A story of loneliness, of lives on the margins, of diversity and strong sensitivity, interwoven with lacerating irony written and directed by Pino Ammendola.
Christmas in the villages
In the village of Antrodoco, the historic center is transformed into a Christmas market where, under the light of the lights, you can find many objects to buy and give for Christmas. The village of Santa Severa, and its Castle, are the setting for the Village of Wonders where you can walk accompanied by the most beautiful Christmas music performed by classic bagpipers, but also see street performers, puppet theater, live music bands . Nativity scenes and street food are the protagonists of Christmas in San Vito Romano, where on Sunday you can immerse yourself in a warm and magical Christmas atmosphere with the wonderful path to discover those small works of art that are the cribs and taste tasty recipes in the food and wine stands . In the village of Ariccia, the night of Bethlehem comes alive with the Living Nativity Scene, a re-enactment of history and emotions that can be visited throughout the Christmas period. The magic of Christmas that relives in the Don Bosco Oratory of the village.
The markets
At the Circolo Snodo Mandrione on Sunday opens the OFF Market Christmas Edition. Collectible vinyls, urban style market and crafts for a Sunday of pre-Christmas shopping in relaxation between spritz and good beers with friends. Last weekend to be able to visit the Lux Area Center- Artisans on Show in the historic center of the city, in the splendid Coffee House of Palazzo Colonna, with many exhibitors offering their hand-made Christmas decorations of high craftsmanship.
The exhibitions in the city
The street art of the English Banksy can be visited in an exhibition on the artist at the Chiostro del Bramante. A collection of his works, also coming from private collections, a path in which to discover works created from 1999 to 2020, with thematic sections on the works that have become icons and on the fundamental themes of the artist. In the year in which the seven hundred years since the death of Dante Alighieri are celebrated at the Scuderie del Quirinale, the exhibition “Dante’s Inferno” offers a journey through the works that tell the story of Dante’s Inferno from the Middle Ages to the present day.
Walk to Testaccio
Between Christmas sweets and historic shops, on Saturday the guided walk will unfold in the ancient district of Testaccio, which already constituted a commercial area in the Roman Empire. A walk in the nostalgia between memories of the old local market and the shops for a journey through the history of the first working-class district of Rome. [TUTTE LE INFORMAZIONI]
The Christmas Villages
There are many places to spend hours, catapulted into the magic of Christmas. These include the Christmas World village at the Auditorium Parco della Musica, an open-air museum where it will be possible to travel through the Christmas atmospheres of the whole world through an exhibition itinerary. On the outskirts of Rome, in the district of Length, the Fantastic Castle of Santa Claus has opened its doors to visitors of all ages. An enchanted world that comes to life with fairies, elves, characters that symbolize Christmas and fairy tales.
Children’s theater
Among the theatrical performances for children scheduled these days, we suggest “Christmas Tale” at the Ar.Ma theater Via Ruggero di Lauria, 22 in the Prati area. The story of a stingy and grumpy gentleman who does not believe in the magic of the Christmas party and who with the help of nice spirits will realize he was wrong and will become good and generous. [TUTTE LE INFORMAZIONI]
The Adika Pongo at the Cotton Club
At the Cotton Club on Saturday the Adika Pongo band founded in 1993 by a young Niccolò Fabi performs in concert. An unmissable evening, between original songs and homage to great bands, in which it will be impossible to remain seated. [TUTTE LE INFORMAZIONI]
The Christmas exhibitions
The fifth edition of the Christmas Art exhibition will be inaugurated on Saturday 11 December, offering a selection of works that will be able to reconcile the evocative Christmas magic, in the fullness of emotions and traditions, with the sensitivity and expressive interiority of the authors. Christmas is Pop in the works of Alessandra Pierelli on display at the SpazioCima Gallery with “XMas Factory”. The intent is to immerse the visitors of the exhibition in a fairy-tale world, fantastic and colorful, between sweet and elegant puppets and dresses with red velvet drapes. Also on display are many small sculptures, all available for purchase, perfect for decorating traditional home trees.