ANGELA KOSTA INTERVIEWS THE POET ALESSANDRO RUSSO NOMINATE FOR THE 2023 STREGA AWARD
1) Kosta: INTRODUCE YOUR SELF (PROFESSIONAL TITLE SUCH AS AUTHOR, NOVELIST, POETRY, PUBBLICIST, ETC.)
Russo: My name is Alessandro Russo, I am an Italian poet, and now I live in Naples where I returned after living for a time in Brescia.
2) Kosta: WHAT IS THE NAME OF YOU MOST POPULAR BOOK, PROJECT, OR UPCOMING EVENTS?
Russo: Definitely my latest book "Until the blood separates us" (Leonida Editions)
3) Kosta: HAVE YOU WON ANY AWARDS, CERTIFICATES, HONORS, STICKERS, OR ANY OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS YOU WANT TO SHARE WITH THE WORLD?
Russo: With the book "Fino il sangue non ci separi - Until the blood separates us" (presented at the Turin Book Fair, at the Venosa Festival "Borgo d'Autore", at the "Xenia Book Fair" in Reggio Calabria, at the "Ricomincio dai Libri" in Naples, at the "Campania Libri Festival" in Naples and at the "Dima Book Festival" in Rome, I won the Rosmini Prize, the Literature Prize of the Ist. I was awarded the Italian Prize of Culture in Naples, the Poetry Prize at the Ithan Show Award, I ranked second at the Alda Merini Prize and the Persephone Prize, third at the Antica Pyrgos Prize, I received the special jury prize at the Astrolabio Prize and the Samnium Prize, the honorable mention at the Il Canto di Dafne Prize, at The Alchemy of Poetry Award, at the Le Grazie Prize, Porto Venere, La Baia dell'Arte and a special mention at the Assosinderesi Awards, the Dostoevsky Prize, the Litterae Fiorentinae Prize and the City of Sarzana Award. I was nominated for the Strega Poetry Prize 2023. Since 2022, I have been a member of the jury of the "Decumani" Prize and since 2023, of the jury of the "La Settimana dello Scrittore" Award. Since September 2023 I have been conducting the poetry festival "Chiamalapoesia" at the "Libreria Libertà" in Torre Annunziata. From next spring I will conduct another poetry festival, sponsored by the Municipality of Positano, which includes three outdoor performances, with poetry readings and interviews from three squares of the splendid pearl of the Amalfi coast. Still with the book "Until the blood separates us", I was a guest of "Casa Sanremo Writers", the salon of the Sanremo Festival dedicated to writers.
4) Kosta: WHAT ARE YOUR HOBBIES?
Russo: Painting, even if lately I manage to devote very little time to it due to the many commitments related to the promotion of "Until the blood separates us" and to the writing of the new book of poems that I hope to be able to complete by this year.
5) Kosta: WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS?
Russo: Certainly being able to propose my texts during the live presentations of the book: the empathy that is created with the audience is beautiful, and you can see from people's expressions when the poem "has arrived" to do what it has to do: generate magic.
I have just returned from Sanremo where I had the opportunity to present my book "Until the blood separates us" selected for the "Casa Sanremo Writers" event, the literary section of the Sanremo Festival. It was a wonderful experience to be able to perform on such an important stage, which among other things gave me the opportunity to meet and compare myself with many other authors from all over Italy. All this is linked to what I said in the previous answer: poetry (in my case) and all other forms of artistic expression must be shared, precisely because of their essential function of creating bonds with other people through an approach that does not respond only to criteria of rationality but that deeply moves the spheres of emotions. Returning to the Sanremo event, I sincerely hope to be able to repeat the experience with my next book, and joking about it, I close this interview with a sentence by Goethe (hoping it will be.
6) Kosta: SHARE THE LINKS TO YOUR BOOKS, PAGES, WEBSITES, BLOGS, OR ANY PLACE DISPLAYING YOUR WORK.
Russo: Readers can follow me on Facebook and Instagram.
Angela Kosta: Thank you very much for the interview. I wish you much success in your literary journey.
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