Reimagining sicily | Mark K. Spano

Little has been produced about the cultural or historic relevance of Sicily. The most invaded place on the planet, the three-sided island’s story rivals both Greece and Egypt as a primary source for Western ideas. Sicily is more fascinating and more diverse than so many of the worn out discussions of regions in France and other parts of Italy. And, few of those “popularized” regions compare to Sicily for a story of authentic human struggle, the presence of cultural icons and the significance of so many important historical sites. But for crime, Sicily has gone unexplored. The finished program will employ no special effects. The Team will explore the principal events of arrivals and departures and their effects on the people of Sicily. Sicilians are a people of strong family ties. How and why did this come about? What institutions held sway on the island? Which passed quietly or not so quietly into history and which remained to shape peoples’ futures and daily lives? And, what were the outcomes? Some not so positive, yet, Sicilians have made formidable contributions to art, architecture and the humanities. And, then, there is food. There are Sicilian foods now that are not simply Sicilian, they are global. They belong to everyone. There are also Sicilian foods that few of us know. This story of Sicily will “reimagine” the ebb and flow of these varied and remarkable occurrences through the pre-Socratic Sicilian Philosopher Empedocles’ prism of Love and Strife.