Claudio Di Girolamo, set designer, painter, director and cultural consultant, at his home in Santiago, Chile.Sofia Yanjari

At 93, Claudio Di Girolamo, one of the most important managers of the Chilean theater scene of the past seven decades, is “running a marathon”. He’s not wearing shorts or sneakers, but he’s in a hurry. “I still don’t have anyone to give the Poststick to,” he laments on a rainy afternoon in the living room of his home in uptown Santiago. Remember how legendary actors Alejandro Flores and Américo Vargas did the same to their generation, giving them audiences in theaters that didn’t exist before. Today that is no longer possible, because “the whole theater is only political and the political is always a pamphlet.” He accuses the Pinochet dictatorship (1973-1990) of having interrupted the creative process, since since the return to Democracy “proceeded very slowly”.

Born in Rome, Di Girolamo prays every morning but doesn’t go to mass. The religious art veteran defines himself as a Catholic, although he doesn’t believe the Virgin Mary is the Mother of God. Recently he read the Lord’s Prayer in Aramaic and was fascinated by the version that is much closer to his faith: Father-Mother, Creator of the Cosmos… “It’s something different. “It does not represent a contrast between earth and sky,” emphasizes the ninety-year-old enthusiastically, thereby demonstrating his intact ability to marvel.

It is precisely the cosmos that occupies him these days. What is beyond. The latest discoveries. The cultural scientist is fascinated by science: “Those who say that everything is possible are not the crazy artists, but the scientists.” he revisited the room of his own home. And found that there was almost nothing left; the works of his long career had taken the place. Also, the mice ate them even though you set traps. That’s why a few weeks ago he donated his more than 3,000 plays to the archives of the Catholic University Theater School, an institution with which he maintains an affective bond because it was the first one he worked for when he arrived from Italy at the age of 19 years.

Behind each of these 3,000 works lies an anecdote that Di Girolamo knows how to tell with the precision of a historian. María de la Luz Hurtado, researcher and director of the program in charge of the archives, exceptionally brought some pieces from the Campus Oriente university center to the meeting at the artist’s house, where they are carefully preserved.

Di Girolamo travels back to the Second World War with some delicate sketches he made for La macchina infernale while he was studying at the School of Fine Arts in Rome (1944-1948). The grandson of a man who ran away from home to join the company of Eleonora Duse, the great Italian theater diva of the turn of the century, recalls crying “hysterically” when he first heard a bombardment. Also Christmas with ordinary pots – one evening when the refrigerator was empty, his mother set the table and let him and his brothers draw what they wanted to eat; a game that fortunately made them forget about hunger, the hiding places in the basement, the blankets on the windows … Even as he eventually got used to it, to the point that he and his brother Vittorio sat down on beach chairs to count how many planes they saw flying across the sky.

Sketches of the set for “La Macchina Infernale” drawn by Claudio Di Girolamo at the Art Academy in Rome (1944-1948). Sofia Yanjari

More documents appear. He already drew some of them in Chile, the country to which he came without knowing what a democracy “in search of peace and bread” was. They are from the play Los Condenados for the Catholic University’s Teatro Ensayo, performed at the Municipal de Santiago. He learned a lesson from this experience. The audience was so impressed by the “pretty” of the scenery that they ended up with “trauma”. “The landscape was too full of character. I understood that I had to be in the service of the work. “The protagonists are the actors, the stage design has to help them,” emphasizes the son and father of artists.

In this chapter of his life, he uses the correction of a well-known fact: he did not found the Teatro Ictus – his next professional step – in 1958. It was Mónica Echeverría and Paz Yrarrázaval, he clarifies. There he worked for decades with a group of students who had emigrated from the UC Rehearsal Theater. They presented works classified as avant-garde and filled the rooms Saturday after Saturday. “The dictatorship was good for Ictus because it forced us not to do leaflet theatre, they banned us. People asked us how do you do it? “We have learned to say without saying it and not by saying it,” he emphasizes.

The members of the company turned 30, 40 and 50 years old on stage. According to his account, Di Girolamo suggested opening a second branch of the theater for young people, but received no support and left the theatre. Leaving Sala La Comedia was not easy. Evidence of this is the love letter he wrote to the place on parting, which he read in an issue of the Cádiz Festival:

Over the years, forgive me, I felt like I was making history with you. Some of those who were first in their seats keep coming back. In them I see the passage of time. His first gray hairs remind me how much I owe you and how much you took from me. You gave a place to my illusions and my hopes. You managed to entangle my life with you. That’s why I love you. But I also hate you because by holding me back you tamed me a little, you forced me to stay, to settle down; You tried to convince me that I can’t live without you. Maybe it’s true; But I have to be honest with you, especially today. I’ll have to leave you sooner or later; or you will leave me The “comedy” will continue for me somewhere else; for you, here, with others.

Pieces by Claudio De Girolamo: manual program of the work Martín Rivas, Teatro de Ensayo UC (1954); Manual for the work La Princesa, Ictus (1961), poster for the work Variations for Percussion Dead, Ictus (1964); and the draft of a proposal for the poster of the X° Iberoamerican Theater Festival of Cádiz (1995).sofia yanjari

In search of new blood, Di Girolamo founded the Teatro Dos Workshop. “I do theater and I have to have my finger on the pulse in order to be able to conduct a dialogue,” he says. Is this dialogue taking place today? “To understand an idea of ​​contemporary theater it has to take a certain amount of time, and now nothing is permanent. We live in a market society.” This idea of ​​the ephemeral has occupied him for some time. Not as an adjective, but as a subject. He sees the impermanence he speaks of in every moment he reviews his life or the 50 he claims to have. He would marry them all. He is unwilling to choose whether he prefers the position of set designer, director or cultural adviser – a position he currently holds in Gabriel Boric’s government. He identifies as curious.

“I was born and will die because I am curious. As for death, I’m curious to know what’s there. It defines this process but is not definitive. And don’t tell me I’m talking about eternal life because I’m religious. I know this doesn’t end, but it changes. Why are you so convinced? “Because we’re so young we don’t have eyes to see everything else, we don’t have wings to see beyond,” he says, before returning to a reflection on the universe. A painting hangs behind his back in which he wanted to capture “the most original”. It is a broken marraqueta – “the bread…give us this day our daily bread” – that flies in the depths and darkness of the cosmos. He painted it in 1988: “Before I felt it, but now I understand what it means.”

Claudio Di Girolamo in the living room of his house in Santiago. Sofia Yanjari

A private club in New York City is looking to upgrade its clientele after receiving complaints it’s teeming with gangsters and half-naked girls looking for sugar daddies.

Casa Cipriani, the members-only club frequented by the likes of Leonardo De Caprio, is keen to attract a more sophisticated crowd as word of the presence of members from questionable backgrounds is spreading, sources say.

“They’re trying to get a better audience because everyone’s complaining that there’s a lot of[mafia guys]and … young girls walking around practically naked,” a source told Page Six.

Another source described the members as “girls looking for sugar daddies.”

Located in Lower Manhattan in the iconic Battery Maritime Building, the club still has a long waiting list of 4,000 people. But a source said, “They’re looking for a cooler clientele, like people from the art world … more prominent people.”

Casa Cipriani, the members-only club frequented by the likes of Leonardo De Caprio, is keen to attract a more sophisticated crowd as word of the presence of members from questionable backgrounds is spreading

The club still has a long waiting list of 4,000 people. But a source said, “They’re looking for a cooler clientele, like people from the art world … more prominent people.”

A spokesman for the exclusive club argued the rumors were likely coming from a fierce suitor who was rejected from the club

Casa Cipriani is located in Lower Manhattan in the famous Battery Maritime Building

“They’re really trying to clean it up because right now it’s getting a little cheesy.”

A spokesman for the exclusive club argued the rumors were likely coming from a fierce suitor who was rejected from the club.

“We pride ourselves on the privacy of our community and do not comment on false allegations,” a spokesperson told Page Six.

The rep added, “Sounds like someone’s upset that they’re not coming in… because the reality is we’re getting more and more interest from the arts and entertainment world.”

According to their website, Casa Cipriani is described as a “true private members’ club in the modern sense” that “brings together a diverse community of people enjoying life’s simple pleasures.”

One industry insider suggested one possible solution: “Hire an Amy Sacco.” “It’s what you need if you want to transform audiences,” referring to a hospitality star behind what was once the most famous nightlife destination, New Yorks, Bungalow 8, says.”

The hotspot also rumored to have lost one of its most famous members earlier this month: Taylor Swift.

Swift reportedly canceled her membership after other guests snapped photos of her on a date with Matty Healy in May.

However, the club denied that Swift had declined membership, but admitted that “Casa Cipriani revoked membership for some members for violating our club rules.”

Casa Cipriani has revoked at least three memberships after excited guests snapped photos of Taylor Swift with her new beau Matt Healy at the swanky club, despite no photos being allowed at the venue.

The pair caused a stir when they strolled into the $4,000-a-year New York private club in May, just days after the bad-boy rocker was spotted performing at one of Taylor’s Eras Tour concerts.

Photos surfaced online after the date, prompting the club to send out a memo to its members reiterating its ban on photography.

“At least three members were kicked out for taking pictures of Taylor,” a source said. ‘There is a no-images policy.’ Your membership has been revoked.’

Double date: The hot new couple had a double date with Swift’s partner Jack Antonoff and his fiancee Margaret Qualley at Casa Cipriani, a fan took to social media

Taylor Swift and Matty Healy were caught “kissing” and holding hands on a romantic date in New York City on Thursday (pictured)

Casa Cipriani has revoked at least three memberships after delighted regulars snapped photos of Taylor Swift with her new beau Matt Healy, despite no photos being allowed at the venue

Taylor is said to be on the mend after her romance with simmering British actor Joe Alwyn, whom she dated for six years, fell through

The club’s policy states: Photography and videography allowed [the] Entering the company premises is strictly prohibited in all areas. Taking photos or posting on social media is also prohibited on the premises.

“We have become aware that images have been taken at the club in recent days that have violated the privacy of our members,” the memo reads.

“It is important to note that any member found to be in violation of these guidelines will have their membership immediately revoked.”

The source pointed out that “Taylor knew the guidelines and then had to leave” because of the eager fans.

They added that it wasn’t even a member who took the picture, but their guest: “And her membership was revoked anyway.”

The club’s policy states: Photography and videography allowed [the] Entering the company premises is strictly prohibited in all areas. Taking photos or posting on social media is also prohibited on the premises.”

The couple’s romantic outing, during which they were spotted “kissing” and holding hands, came just days after Healy was spotted clapping and flipping back and forth during the final performance of Taylor’s Eras Tour.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – Australia’s highest court on Monday dismissed Russia’s request for an injunction that would have stopped the eviction of its embassy from a location in the capital Canberra. A man who had occupied the block in a portable booth for more than a week left the block soon after in an apparent act of Russian defiance.

Supreme Court Justice Jayne Jagot called Russia’s objection to a lease termination law weak. “I don’t think (Russia’s) case is … a strong case. In fact, it’s difficult to identify a serious issue that needs to be looked at,” Jagot said.

Parliament passed an emergency law on June 15 ending Russia’s lease of the largely vacant building for security reasons, saying the new embassy would have been too close to the parliament building.

Government attorney Tim Begbie said Russia appeared to have sought the injunction to protect its own security and intelligence interests.

“It’s not just that they didn’t make any convincing arguments for invalidating the Constitution in that motion, they didn’t make any arguments for it at all,” Begbie said.

Russian lawyer Elliot Hyde had argued that Ambassador Alexey Pavlovsky would not have confidence in the integrity and security of a consular building already on the site if the embassy was not allowed to retain ownership until a decision on challenging the termination of the lease was made.

Hyde said a man who had lived at the site since at least last week was a security guard guarding the site. The man had been described in the media as a Russian diplomat.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision and expected the Russians to leave the compound.

“The court has clarified that at this time there is no legal basis for a Russian presence to continue at the site and we expect the Russian Federation to act in accordance with the court’s decision,” Albanese told reporters.

“Australia supports the law. “Russia hasn’t been very good at following the law lately,” Albanese added, referring to the invasion of Ukraine.

The security guard exited the fenced area after the decision and didn’t tell reporters as he exited the gate. He was carrying bags and was picked up by a car with diplomatic plates.

The Russian embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Russia had accused Australia of “russophobic hysteria” for terminating the lease on land in Canberra’s Diplomatic Quarter where Moscow planned to build a new embassy. The current Russian Embassy is located in the Canberra suburb of Griffith and its operations will not be affected.

Don Rothwell, an international law expert at the Australian National University, said an examination of the published list of accredited Russian diplomats in Australia found that there were only three male diplomats who could be the man guarding embassy grounds.

Given Hyde’s description of the squatter as a security guard, Rothwell doubted the man enjoyed diplomatic immunity that could have prevented Australian authorities from removing him from the site.

With him gone, police could avoid any further legal challenge by securing the compound and preventing any Russian diplomat from taking his place, Rothwell said.

Australian Federal Police last week refused to explain why the man had not been removed from the disputed site as an intruder.

The legal battle over the site marks a new low in strained relations between Russia and one of Ukraine’s most generous non-NATO supporters.

Albanese on Monday announced an additional A$110 million ($74 million) in aid to Ukraine, which includes 70 military vehicles and 28 M113 tracked armor. The aid also includes ammunition and AU$10 million (US$6.7 million) in humanitarian aid for shelter, health services, clean water and sanitation.

The new aid package brings Australia’s total aid to Ukraine to AU$790 million (US$528 million) since Russia’s invasion last year.

During the court hearing, Australia’s lawyer suggested that the Kremlin was distracted from the case by the short-lived insurgency of the Wagner Group’s mercenaries in Russia.

Tim Begbie said Hyde did not respond to a letter sent on Saturday in which the government tried to fend off the request for an injunction by offering not to damage the consular building or rent the site to someone else while the Russian lawsuit being heard in court.

“I’m not criticizing my educated friend for not replying to this letter,” Begbie said, referring to Hyde. “Russia had other things on its mind at the weekend.”