Let’s be frank: Civitanova Marche is a small pearl split into two halves that blend together so perfectly they take your breath away. The lively coastal area, with its beaches awarded the Blue Flag, and its splendid medieval village that preserves the charm of another era, with its cobbled streets, ancient churches, and historic walls, tell its full potential to perfection. But there is something else it shines for, lighting the sky above it: the cultural festivals.
Here the festivals are much more than mere events: they are journeys into the soul of a place. Participating in an outdoor exhibition, attending a concert in a historic square, or taking part in a reading under the stars means discovering a place through its voices, its flavors, its stories. They are experiences that transform a visit into something alive, authentic, memorable.
For those who love to travel with curious eyes and an open heart, they are the perfect opportunity to tune into the spirit of a community, grasping its uniqueness in a direct and engaging way. And, among them, one shines particularly bright: Filosofarte, which has spread nationally, carrying a pulsating, luminous desire at its heart: to create a space for dialogue and critical reflection on current topics, involving diverse voices and a heterogeneous audience.
Civitanova Marche, a True Hub of Attraction
It must be said that the mind behind Filosofarte (and, truth be told, also behind other regional festivals) is Gianluca Crocetti, a passionate and strong supporter of the Marche’s tourist and cultural landscape, known for his work as a local entrepreneur, municipal council member, and promoter of cultural initiatives. Crocetti, who in the Municipality of Civitanova Marche serves as president of the Culture and Tourism Commission and who has backed the launch of several ventures ranging from dining to technology startups, had in mind a precise plan for his small city.
What plan? To make everyone understand that Civitanova Marche, a place where sea and hills meet in a harmonious embrace creating a landscape that enchants and invites exploration, could transform into a hub attracting new investments and ideas. A place that could grow and shine like never before. The same administration, when Filosofarte took its first steps, wanted to emphasize that the city has “always been open to novelty” and possesses enormous potential thanks to its strategic position and growing charm.
Filosofarte’s Boost to the Territory
But that’s not all. Crocetti’s idea was also to ensure that the entire territory benefited from the festival’s presence, which indeed happened. Filosofarte quickly distinguished itself for its support of local entrepreneurial initiatives: many, many collaborations with institutions and communities were born. Cultural events, often, take place inside restaurants, cafes, and seaside establishments, which for the occasion are transformed into theaters of culture.
Not by chance, Filosofarte is built on soft lights, pages turned under the stars, dialogues that begin on the stages but culminate in conversations at the end of the evening. It is made of words and reflections that mirror themselves in the places, in its stories, in its diversity. The festival aims to give space to the stops where it unfolds, underscoring that philosophy is not just study, but a living practice that draws sustenance from breathtaking landscapes or the welcoming glimpses of venues and homes.
Each event seeks to cultivate questions, wonder, discoveries. For those seeking an experience that unites nature, culture, and gastronomy, they can head to Civitanova Marche to be surprised and charmed, wandering among book launches, debates with personalities from the political and cultural world, artistic performances, and wine-and-food tastings. This festival does not settle for being a mere event, but becomes a journey, a meeting, a spark: a true embrace between art and thought, between beauty and word. It is a small gentle revolution that chooses to bring culture out of its usual spaces, letting it breathe among vineyards and in the villages.
From Filosofarte to Alba Musicale
We had spoken of other notable festivals that promote the Marche region and indeed, there is at least one more worth mentioning: Alba Musicale, also conceived by Gianluca Crocetti. Born in 2023, Alba Musicale is a evocative format designed to enrich Civitanova Marche’s summer tourism offering. It consists of dawn concerts on the town beaches, a show that unites music and dance in the natural backdrop of the seafront at sunrise.
In recent years the main event, titled “Viva la Vida”, has taken place at 5 in the morning on August 14, in step with Ferragosto week, the busiest of the summer. On the beach’s natural stage, artists of various genres performed: violinist Valentino Alessandrini wowed the audience by playing Puccini’s Nessun dorma at sunrise, accompanied by dancer Giulia Alvear and the tenor Augusto Celsi’s voice.
The event also featured testimonials and special guests such as Alessandro Gattafoni – an athlete and face of the Italian Cystic Fibrosis League – who arrived by canoe to join the crowd before the concert. The cultural dawn was completed with a temporary exhibition by artist Daria Castelli and a photographic collection by Paolo D’Angelo devoted to the colors of sunrises, as well as a closing party animated by local young dancers and a DJ.
This initiative, described as “poetic and original”, quickly crossed city borders: “Many people call me from all over Italy, saying they don’t want to miss this show,” Crocetti said, underscoring how Civitanova Marche is launching cultural trends imitated elsewhere. The Alba Musicale format, with the backing of the Municipality and the Marche Region and the collaboration of local associations and private sponsors, has indeed attracted the interest of other seaside towns that would like to replicate it.
What this indicates is not only the event’s audience success, but also its impact in terms of tourist visibility: Civitanova, thanks to Filosofarte and its creator Gianluca Crocetti, is recognized as a workshop of innovative initiatives that enrich visitor experience, creating new reasons for attraction beyond the traditional seaside appeal.
