By Kim Himstreet   Portland Opera's 50th anniversary season will conclude on Saturday Aug. 1 with a celebration featuring a street fair and free outdoor simulcast of their final production of Gaetano Donizetti's "The Elixir of Love." While opera and a street fair might seem like an unusual pairing, Portland Opera ties it all together wi...

by Tonya Russo Hamilton "Se avete due pani, vendetene uno e comprate un fiore, perchĂ© anche l'anima ha fame." If one has two loaves of bread, sell one and buy a flower, for the soul also has hunger. This Italian proverb spoken by Cindy Felice's mother throughout her life signifies her journey from childhood arts appreciation to becoming...

By Moira Macdonald   Ideally, one would travel to Portland Art Museum's new exhibit "Italian Style: Fashion Since 1945" on the back of a Vespa motor scooter piloted by Gregory Peck. But Amtrak works just fine, too.   The exhibit, featuring dozens of elegant garments from the likes of Valentino, Prada, Armani and Pucci (who, it turns o...

I'm visiting the Italian community in Portland. There are around 900 Italian citizens in this North-Western state, while many more are the Americans of Italian descent. Honorary Consul Andrea Bartoloni is their active point of reference.Italians here are mainly professionals working in the apparel and hi-tech industry, as well as in Universities an...