After a brief introduction by the Department's Head, Prof. Gloria Lauri-Lucente, and the Director of the Italian Cultural Institute, Massimo Sarti, postgraduate students Glen Bonnici, Tiziana Borg, Ilaria Labbate and Patrick Sammut read the eternal verses in Italian, Maltese and English.
During the day-long live stream, five continents in unison celebrated Francesca da Rimini and Dante Alighieri on the 700th anniversary of the poet's death. This event was organised by the Centro Internazionale di Studi Francesca da Rimini in collaboration with the Istituto Italiano di Cultura La Valletta, amongst other Italian cultural institutes.
The translations availed of were the Maltese translation by Alfred Palma and the English translation by one of the most prominent Dante scholars, Prof. Robert Hollander.
Prof. Hollander's relationship with the Department of Italian and the University of Malta goes back to 2008 when he visited Malta on the occasion of the conferment of the Honoris Cause degree to renowned actor, filmmaker, and Dante aficionado Roberto Benigni. During his stay, Prof. Hollander delivered a lecture entitled 'Dante's Sympathetic Sinners' that explored, among others, Dante's portrayal of Francesca da Rimini herself.