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QC09012016

28 The QUEE NS Courier • SEPTEMBER 1, 2016 for breaking news visit www.qns.com File photo The Secret Theatre will donate proceeds from “The Merchant of Venice” to victims of the earthquake in Italy. LIC THEATER TO DONATE PLAY’S PROCEEDS TO ITALY EARTHQUAKE VICTIMS By Angela Matua amatua@qns.com @AngelaMatua The Secret Theatre in Long Island City is using its upcoming production of “The Merchant of Venice” to raise money for victims of the recent earthquake in Italy. According to Richard Mazda, the founder of the theater, 25 percent of every ticket sale will go to a disaster fund to help those affected by the earthquake. The theater will also be collecting money before and after the show and working with local businesses like Manducatis Rustica to raise money. “We just found it poignant because the play is set in Italy anyway and we are particularly conscious that the production is set in 1945 when Italy is kind of in ruins on the last day when Hitler dies, so there’s a certain World War aspect,” Mazda said. “It was a time in Italy where it was important that reconstruction started so we thought it would be a good fit for the production.” More than 250 people died in the earthquake that struck on the morning of Aug. 24 in the town of Amatrice, about 60 miles northeast of Rome. The tremor, which registered 6.2 on the Richter scale, occurred while most people were sleeping and leveled most buildings in Amatrice and nearby villages. “The Merchant of Venice,” a play by William Shakespeare, is set in northern Italy and follows Bassanio, a Venetian merchant who tries to woo Portia, a wealthy heiress from Belmont, Italy. In this adaption, which takes place in April 1945, Adolf Hitler kills himself and his actions have consequences. Italian citizens and American occupying forces celebrate his death but Italy is filled with racist propaganda from Axis and Allied forces trying to promote their competing views. Shylock, a Jewish man who lends money to Bassanio’s friend Antonio so they can travel to Manhattan to woo Portia, must grapple with a Europe that has imprisoned and murdered his people. Antonio falls in love with Bassanio, who in this adaption is an American soldier. Italian restaurants in the area will create a special pasta dish with pasta made in Amatrice, Mazda said, and an after party on opening night and closing night will also raise money for and awareness of the cause. The restaurants participating in the fundraising are still being confirmed. “I think the unique geography in Italy means that those cities, those towns will never be rebuilt in the same way,” Mazda said. The play will run from Sept. 1 through Sept. 18 and will be directed by Alberto Bonilla. Advanced tickets will cost $18, while tickets at the door will cost $20. To purchase tickets, visit secrettheatre.com. RIDGEWOOD-BASED GROUP LAUNCHES ONLINE FUNDRAISER TO HELP VICTIMS OF ITALY EARTHQUAKE BY ROBERT POZARYCKI rpozarycki@qns.com/@robbpoz As rescuers are working furiously to find survivors following the massive earthquake in Italy earlier last week, an Italian cultural organization based in Ridgewood is raising funds toward the rebuilding process. The Associazione Culturale Italiana di New York and Italian daily newspaper America Oggi have launched a GoFundMe page seeking cash donations for the earthquake victims. As of press time, more than $22,000 had been raised toward the drive’s $100,000 goal. More than 250 people have died in the earthquake that struck early in the morning (local time) on Aug. 24 in the town of Amatrice, about 60 miles northeast of Rome. The tremor, which registered 6.2 on the Richter scale, occurred while most people were sleeping and leveled most buildings in Amatrice and nearby villages. The quake struck a few miles to the north of the city of Aquila, which was similarly devastated in a 2009 earthquake. Following the earthquake, the Associazione raised funds and teamed up with the Agnelli Family Foundation to build a new elementary school. “Although it is to early for us to have identified a project, the need will be there as the damage is catastrophic,” Tony DiPiazza, chairman of the Associazione Culturale Italiana di New York, wrote of the Amatrice earthquake in a message on the GoFundMe page. “We will be once again partnering with the Agnelli Foundation as before, who will identify a project, which most likely will be a local school or home for the elderly.” In the past, the Associazione has held fundraisers in the aftermath of a number of other natural and man-made disasters, such as the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Following the Aug. 24 quake, DiPiazza and Associazione President Tony Mule quickly worked to establish an earthquake fund as well as the GoFundMe account to receive monetary donations. In the wake of previous disasters, financial donations have been the most effective way to bring relief to those who need it the most. The school rebuilt in Aquila following the 2009 quake was completed in just four months, DiPiazza told the Ridgewood Times, noting that the structure was one of the first major buildings reconstructed in the area. “Everybody’s displaced” now in Amatrice, “and we want to get their lives back to normal as best as possible,” DiPiazza added. He anticipates the fundraising effort will be going on for many months as Italy works to rebuild. Visit gofundme.com/29cgqsz8 to make a contribution to the Italy earthquake fundraiser. Those who can’t donate on the GoFundMe page may mail a check payable to the Associazione Culturale Italiana di New York Earthquake Fund, c/o Astoria Bank, 75-25 Metropolitan Ave., Middle Village, NY 11379. Photo: Antonio Nardelli / Shutterstock.com In the wake of Wednesday’s devastating earthquake in Italy, a Ridgewood group is raising funds for the rebuilding process.


QC09012016
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