Now in existence for over a year, Casa Italiana di Las Vegas, a non-profit organization, continues to enrich the local community with its programs. Its mission is to promote and divulge traditional and contemporary Italian culture in all its varied forms through educational programs, events and Italian language courses for children and adults.

It was the first institute in Las Vegas to introduce Italian Immersion Mommy and Me classes for toddlers, where the child will be exposed to words and sentences of the Italian language through interaction, play, songs and nursery rhymes. Additional classes for older children are available and are based on the Reggio Emilia approach. This is an innovative and inspiring method to early childhood education that uses art, science, repurposed and recycled material to spark the child imagination while immersed in an Italian context.

Among the classes offered to adults are Mangiamo in Italiano – let’s eat in Italian – a fun way of learning that pairs the love of food with the love for the language. Students are often served traditional Italian delicacies often accompanied by a glass of Prosecco or Limoncello during the class.

CILV President and Founder is Las Vegas attorney, Marc Randazza. “Unfortunately, most Italian Americans do not speak Italian,” he says. “I constantly hear them complain that their parents did not teach them, so they never got around to learning it. This is no excuse.” Randazza himself learned at a late age. “I was 20 when I moved to Italy to learn Italian,” he continues. “My grandparents spoke Sicilian and Italian, but my parents didn’t speak a word. I was determined to re-connect that chain.”

Although still conducting Italian classes, CILV has a calendar packed with cultural and fun events in the upcoming months. A monthly guest speaker will entertain members in THE SALOTTO ITALIANO (The Italian Living Room) through lectures on food, Italian cinema, wine and traditions. September will celebrate the inaugural Vespa on the Strip Rally and a Red Carpet World Premiere of “W Gli Sposi” an Italian movie directed by Valerio Zanoli (valeriozanoli.com) starring Italian music legend Iva Zanicchi.

CILV stresses that it is not just for Italian Americans. “Of course, most of those interested are,” states Randazza. “But, this is not about ethnicity. It is about culture. We want everyone to feel welcome.”
Casa Italiana di Las Vegas plans to expand its school to a bigger location to include more children classes and a professional kitchen for Italian cooking courses.