ZIC! Book Festival
Stories Words Writings
After the success of its first edition in 2024, the ZIC! Book Festival returns in 2025 under the artistic direction of Silvia Vecchini, who embraced the project with enthusiasm and vision.
From 19 to 21 September 2025, the historic center of Chiusi will turn into a widespread stage, hosting the second edition of a festival that is not just a literary event, but the result of a shared journey of education and promotion of reading.
The name ZIC! recalls the Etruscan word zich, meaning “to write.” The term is known thanks to a bilingual Etruscan-Latin inscription engraved on a funerary urn from the 2nd century BC, now preserved in the Civic Museum of Chiusi. It is a reference deeply rooted in the city’s history and an ever-relevant reminder of the ancient desire to leave a written trace.
The 2025 program will offer 15 free events: three days of meetings, presentations, workshops, and performances featuring nationally renowned authors such as Alessandro Sanna, Giusi Quarenghi, Cristiana Pezzetta, Alice Bigli. Music will also take center stage with a live show by Elisabetta Garilli, along with thought-provoking sessions for adult audiences, including talks by historian Vanessa Roghi and reporter Valerio Nicolosi.
Program
Friday, 19 September
4:30 PM | Cloister of San Francesco
Festival opening and visit to the exhibition “Songs of the Beginning, Songs of the End”
6:00 PM | P. Mascagni Theater
Musical performance “The Enchantment of the Word Being Born”
Saturday, 20 September
10:00 AM – 12:30 PM | National Etruscan Museum of Chiusi
Workshop “Reading the Past, Finding Stories”
3:00 PM | “Ottiero Ottieri” Municipal Library
Exhibition of works created by children from the nursery schools of the “Graziano da Chiusi” Comprehensive Institute and the “Sacro Cuore” nursery school
4:45 PM | Cloister of San Francesco
Festival opening and visit to the exhibition “Songs of the Beginning, Songs of the End”
6:00 PM | San Francesco Conference Hall
Meeting with Valerio Nicolosi – “Crossing Borders”
9:00 PM | P. Mascagni Theater
Musical performance “Tinotina Tinotino Tinotintintin”
Sunday, 21 September
10:30 AM – 12:30 PM | San Francesco Conference Hall
Training session “Growing Readers” (registration recommended)
3:30 PM | “Ottiero Ottieri” Municipal Library
Read-aloud session “This Story Begins Like This”
4:00 PM | San Francesco Conference Hall
Author talk “Reading Wounds, Telling Stories” with Simone Saccucci
6:00 PM | San Francesco Conference Hall
Meeting with Monica Fanicchi – “The Stone in the Pond. From Gianni Rodari to the Feminist Word”