Conversando a Sampieri

The Sampieri literary festival

Conversando a Sampieri is the summer literary festival held in Sampieri, a seaside village in the municipality of Scicli, in the province of Ragusa, in the heart of south-eastern Sicily. Originally launched as Autori & Libri and now also known by the formula Autori & Libri, conversando a Sampieri, the event has become one of the most anticipated cultural highlights of the Iblean summer.

Where and when

The meetings are held at the Pata Pata, a venue overlooking the Sampieri seafront, in an evening setting that blends the sea breeze with literary reflection. The festival takes place throughout the months of July and August, sometimes extending into the first few days of September, with events typically starting at 7:00 PM.

A prestigious lineup

The artistic direction is entrusted to journalist Marco Sammito, who curates a program each year that alternates between novelists, essayists, philosophers, archaeologists, journalists, and key figures of public debate. The evenings take the form of genuine conversations, where the author engages in a dialogue with a critic or journalist, leaving ample room for interaction with the audience.

Over the years, Sampieri has hosted prominent names in Italian culture, from philosophers like Massimo Cacciari to writers like Simonetta Agnello Hornby, as well as nationally renowned journalists, archaeologists, and public intellectuals. Alongside the main festival, the Cogitare series of meetings has been introduced, dedicated to themes of thought and current events.

Culture, sea, and community

More than just a series of presentations, Conversando a Sampieri is a defining event for the community of Scicli and for the many tourists who frequent the Iblean coast during the summer. Its free-admission format has helped make it popular, transforming the village of Sampieri into a small open-air literary salon.

The event is organized by the Associazione Donna Lidda, an organization deeply rooted in the Scicli area, and enjoys the attention of local and regional Sicilian media. For those visiting south-eastern Sicily, attending an evening in Sampieri means combining the discovery of the Iblean sea with the pleasure of meeting authors and exchanging ideas.