They described him as grumpy, lonely, short-tempered, heartless. An imaginary creature, ugly, hairy and green in colour, representing all those who, for various reasons, do not like Christmas. This is the character of the “Grinch”, the protagonist of a highly successful children’s book, who on Saturday afternoon (from 5.00 p.m. onwards) will take on human form to kick off ‘Christmas in the Centre’ in Castelfiorentino, a Christmas festival that will last until 7 January. Starting from Via Garibaldi, the “Grinch” will move along the other streets of the natural shopping centre together with about twenty “Father Christmas” in the flesh, strictly at his beck and call, to entertain adults and children alike, and perhaps offer them the chance to take an original souvenir photo, taking advantage of the luminous stations (“selfie points”) scattered throughout the city centre.
There will be no shortage of games and workshops, aimed at children and adults alike: in addition to the Be.Go Museum (3.00 p.m./7.00 p.m., “Be.Go in gioco”), worth mentioning is “Taste the waste”, a sensory journey between taste and material exploration, a workshop with discarded plastic objects on luminous tables combined with the tasting of very special cocktails.
In Piazza Gramsci, in addition to the rides and entertainment for children, a “Christmas Chalet” will be set up every weekend (Saturday and Sunday), offering mulled wine, sweets and delicacies of all kinds (crepes, hot chocolate, etc.), while on Sunday 3 December there will be a “Break dance” exhibition with dancers wearing clothes in keeping with the Christmas atmosphere.
“Christmas in the centre” will also resume on 8 December and every Saturday and Sunday with new theatre shows, the unmissable “Father Christmas” on a bike from “La Rotonda”, animated fairy tales, creative workshops and comic clownesque interventions. “Christmas in the Centre” is promoted by the CCN Tre Piazze association, in collaboration with the Municipality of Castelfiorentino, Confesercenti, Be.Go Museum, Cetra, Sistemi Ludici, Trivia APS, TeatroCastello, Teatro C’Art, Passi di Luce, Gat Teatro.
“Christmas in the centre of Castelfiorentino”, underlines the Mayor, Alessio Falorni, “is an opportunity not to be missed to entertain children with the numerous “Santas” that will be walking through the streets of the city centre, with the surprise of perhaps running into some bizarre characters such as the “Grinch”, the “Santas” on bicycles, or attending the numerous open-air theatre shows organised by the companies of our territory, which I thank once again on this occasion for their precious collaboration. I therefore invite all citizens, especially parents and grandparents, to take a stroll through the town centre with their children and grandchildren because there will be plenty of opportunities to fully savour the magic of Christmas”.
