The Eternal City Honors One of its Own: Film Legend Alberto Sordi

If you are in Rome over the next few weeks, there is a series of events currently underway that you won't want to miss. 

To mark one decade since the death of Italy's beloved character actor, Alberto Sordi, his namesake Foundation is paying homage to the iconic Roman actor with a number of commemorative initiatives. The celebrations began on February 16th when a street in Rome's sprawling park, Villa Borghese, was dedicated to Sordi. His sister, Aurelia attended the moving ceremony along with the mayor of Rome, Giovanni Alemanno. On February 23rd at the Sala Sinopoli Auditorium Parco della Musica, a concert of the "Grand Orchestra" by Gerardo Di Lella in collaboration with the Conservatory of Santa Cecilia conjured up memories the maestro of Italian Comedy, who is known for his roles in classic films like Un Americano a Roma, The White Sheik, and Mafioso.

One of the most talked about events of this commemoration is a major exhibition at the grand Vittoriano Monument Complex that will run through the end of March. The multimedia exhibition consists of over 200 photographs, documents and film projections, which show the neighborhoods where the actor lived and where he shot many of his movies. The exhibition also features scripts, handwritten letters, movie posters, drawings, installations, video, audio, songs, famous phrases and many articles written by the actor and published between 1988 and 2002.

Alberto Sordi and Carlo Verdone

Carlo Verdone, who worked closely with Sordi has been identified time and time again by the critics as his most likely successor. Together with his brother Luca, Verdone has made ​a documentary film about Sordi that will premiere a few days before the anniversary of his death. Verdone, who refers to Sordi as "an absolutely revolutionary actor," described the film as above all, a story of friendship, a beautiful story of the private aspects of a man who lived for the public. The film is a journey through the life and career of Sordi, showing the sights and landmarks of Rome to which the actor was closest. "Our documentary is a tribute to a great actor who represents the tradition of the Roman performance at the highest level, and that over the years, played a crucial part to the birth and development of the commedia all'italiana," explained Verdone.

For more information about the events and exhibitions taking place in Rome, you can visit the Alberto Sordi Foundation online at www.fondazionealbertosordi.it.