U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden and his wife Jill paid tribute to the Year of Italian Culture in the USA on the occasion of the "Opera Ball", one of the American capital's most important cultural events, which was organized with the help of the Washington National Opera (WNO) at Villa Firenze, residence of Italian Ambassador Claudio Bisogniero.
Over 500 guests joined Joe and Jill Biden in participating in an event that was dedicated to the Year of Italian Culture in the USA, an initiative whose calendar includes approximately 200 events in over 50 American cities over the course of 2013, and one of whose strong points is music.
200th Birthday of Verdi
"Opera is part of Italy's national identity", Ambassador Bisogniero underscored, "and, on this 200th anniversary of the birth of Verdi, we are truly delighted to celebrate our lyric tradition and the Year of Italian Culture in the USA with prestigious institutions such as the WNO and the Kennedy Center".
"Every year is the year of Italy at my house", Joe Biden asserted in his welcome speech at Villa Firenze, adding that "there is only one job that my wife Jill has ever wanted for me: to be the Ambassador to Italy, and I'm not kidding".
The event was further enlivened with the performances of celebrated arias from Italian operas by several members of the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program, sponsored by the WNO in support of young operatic talent.

fonte: Italian Embassy in the USA