TBILISI – Georgia is celebrating the 700^th anniversary of the birth of Dante Alighieri with a constellation of events including a performance next week by the Tbilisi contemporary Ballet Foundation of the dance work “Beatrice” inspired by the Divine Comedy, organisers said Friday.

 The premiere of the ballet will be performed Wednesday May 19 at the Shota Rustaveli theatre in the Georgian capital. Italian composer Dario Marinelli, the winner of an Oscar and Golden Globe, composed the music for the show that will be played by the baroque Orchestra – Georgian Sinfonietta. The Italian Embassy in Tbilisi supports the event.

 In September, a bust of Dante will be placed in front of Parliamentary Library of Georgia and the Georgian post office is preparing a special postage stamp to mark Dante’s anniversary.

 “The show will be also be an educational project connected to a cycle of conferences” says the UNESCO-recognized pianist, MP and President of the Georgian Culture Commission Eliso Bolqvadze, who has been a key figure in organizing the Dante anniversary events in Georgia.

 At a recent meeting with her counterpart, the president of the Italian parliamentary culture commission, Vittoria Casa, Ms Bolqvadze said Georgia wants to further develop itself and turn the page on the country’s old soviet model of education. She thinks that more Italian and Georgian artists could have the opportunity  to take part in higher education exchange programmes.

 Georgia became independent in 1991. During its 30 years of independence the country has developed cultural growth, improving the right approach to learning and Development Professor Temur Kobakhidze has explained the Poems influence on Western literature.

 Georgia’s ties with Italy go back to when the Venetian explorer Marco Polo passed through the country on his way to China.

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