by Lionel Bottari When budding young actors and actresses look for inspiration in that mother of all improvised comedy, Commedia dell’Arte, it is inevitable that they will come upon the name and works of Maestro Antonio Fava. In giving this author of “The Comic Mask in the Commedia dell’Arte” (Northwestern University Press), master artisan of the leather half-mask, and teacher of traditional improvised theater it’s hospitality, Casa Italia joined the ranks of world-class cultural institutions that invites Italian artists to work and stay as artists in residence. The Maestro was invited to come as an artist in residence by the …

by Jeanette Viehman We have something Italian for everyone on earth and in cyberspace at the Italian Cultural Center at Casa Italia in Stone Park ! You can come to the library in person or you can see some of our over 6,000 items online at www.librarything.com. This includes autographed best sellers, periodicals, slides, CDs, DVDs, and cassette tapes of oral histories, music, dance and drama performances. We regularly videotape our programs in their entirety and put them on YouTube, including a live Skype interview with Pierrino Mascarino, the actor who played the title role in the film “Uncle Nino.” …

The Chicagoland Italian American Charitable Organization will present local CPA and longtime member Kenneth Kolnicki with the Dominic Saverino Humanitarian of the Year Award at this year’s Honor and Hope Gala. CIACO will present 15 students with $2,000 scholarships at the event, continuing a 27-year tradition that has bestowed more than half a million dollars of financial aid upon college-bound seniors. Donations also will be made to a wounded veteran and the family of a severely disabled young man, as well as Serenity House in Addison, which provides residential and outpatient treatment services to adults recovering from substance abuse and …

by Vito Cavallo The Chicagoland Italian American Charitable Organization held its annual Honor & Hope Gala at the Alta Villa in Addison. More than 300 were in attendance as CIACO, doing what it does best, gave back to the community in a big way CIACO can state for the record that 100 percent of its year-round fundraising goes to charitable causes. (Membership dues cover all administrative costs.) On this one night alone, we gave out $52,000. Twenty deserving students received scholarships of $2,000 each. A wounded veteran was given $5,000 to help alleviate his financial hardships. A local organization that …

The Chicagoland Italian American Charitable Organization hosted another spectacularly successful Thanksgiving food drive. Dubbed “Baskets of Love,” the annual charitable campaign rallies the assistance of countless volunteers, donors and financial contributors. More than 225 volunteers converged on Buona Beef’s commissary in Berwyn on Nov. 18 to assemble 500 Thanksgiving baskets containing more than 50 pounds of groceries, including whole turkeys. Lending a hand was CIACO stalwart Dennis McKinnon of the 1985 Super Bowl-champion Chicago Bears. The completed baskets were whisked off to needy families across the Chicago area. Special thanks go out to the following companies for their generous contributions …

CIACO will host its dinner dance on April 27 at Alta Villa Banquets in Addison. Dennis Pietrini will be honored as Humanitarian of the Year at the event, Marine Lance Cp. Joseph Singer will receive an Honor and Hope Grant, and 15 students will receive scholarships at the event. For details, call 630-400-9908. So you’ve had a successful 42-year career as a dentist. Think of all the people you helped, and how many smiles you were a part of. For CIACO, where bringing smiles to those less fortunate is our greatest motivation, making Dr. Dennis Pietrini our 2013 Dominic Saverino …

Michael Spilotro ascended to the presidency of the Columbian Club of Chicago at the organization’s 74th annual installation and dinner dance on Jan. 26 at the Medinah Country Club. Joining him as officers are First Vice President Peter A. Volpe, Second Vice President John L. Ferrentino, Third Vice President Jonathan L. Zivojnovic, Secretary Anthony L. Ambrose, Treasurer Jack P. Cannata and Sergeant-at-Arms Vincent A. Maietta. Two-year directors for the Columbian Club are Alan Comella, John F. Curry, George J. DePalma, Robert S. DiFiglio and John Ambrogi, and one-year directors are Mario M. Ricchio, Stuart J. Caravello, Frank Cerrone, Dr. Frank …

The Columbian Club of Chicago installed its 2014 officers at a black-tie-optional gala on Jan. 25 at the Oak Park Country Club River Grove. Incoming president Peter A. Volpe offered the following comments: Columbian Club members, fellow officers, friends and distinguished guests, I am honored to serve as the president of the Columbian Club of Chicago in 2014. Michael Spilotro, I want to thank you for your dedication in 2013 and for all your hard work. I surely have big shoes to fill. As I step into this role, I am humbled by those in whose footsteps I follow. As …

by Joseph F. Locallo Jr. On March 28, the Columbian Club of Chicago proved once again that we are not just a bunch of pretty faces and that, if these were prehistoric times, we would have been hunters, not gatherers! We assembled at the Medinah Country Club’s Lodge, where skeet and trap shooting is enjoyed by sharp-eyed sportsmen with steady trigger fingers. On this particular occasion, we shot trap. Each participant was given 25 rounds of 12- or 20-gage shot gun shells and their personal armories of single-barreled, side-by-side and over-under shotguns were on display. One thousand rounds were shot …

by Terry Quilico On Saturday evening, Nov. 19, supporters of the Comboni Missionaries were greeted by two FIAT 500s flanking the entrance to Abbington Banquets in Glen Ellyn. The occasion was the 45th annual Comboni dinner dance and the Cinquecento’s were there to highlight John Fields of Fields FIAT of Highland Park, who would receive the Comboni Benefactor Award at the event. The cars were also positioned to promote the raffle drawing for a new 2012 FIAT that evening. One hundred and eighty people were in attendance as Nino Folino and then Enzo and Iliana Incandela provided a grand night …