The setting was the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, highlighting its side altars. The subject was inspired by the encounter with Vera Grita and her Work of the Living Tabernacles by choreographer, scriptwriter, screenwriter and portraitist Sonia Nifosi, member of the National Academy of Neoclassical and Contemporary Dance in Rome.

The entire show took the form of a special tribute to the Servant of God, through a special elaboration, the meaning of which is offered here:

Seven Christian Virtues were embodied in seven contemporary women who empathise with one of Vera Grita’s sufferings. Each woman, supported by her own Virtue, is also accompanied in her journey through that suffering.

Vera’s echoes resonated in the soul of each dancer: echoes of suffering and light, echoes of virtues that lightened the burdens experienced in their lives.

The Guardian of the Living Tabernacle is initially a silent figure on a journey of spiritual seeking, but in his encounter with Vera Grita and her virtues, he gathers every fragment of pain to take it with him into the Tabernacle and return it transfigured in light.

The women finally join in the mystery of the Eucharist to encounter the Work of the Living Tabernacles.

The performance was preceded by a prologue on the side altars of the Church and a brief introduction to the figure of Vera Grita by Lodovica Maria Zanet, collaborator of the Salesian General Postulation.

The artists who performed in the dance show, the “Sacri Cuori Viventi. Tra gli Echi di Vera Grita” (Sacred Living Hearts. Among the Echoes of Vera Grita) are:

– Davide Nardi

– Susanna Gasbarra

– Vanessa Costabile

– Valeria Bertoni

– Giorgia Cicchetti

– Samantha Cuppari

– Giulia Donato

– Giada Mille

– Little Sophie D’Andrea

Finally, it is worth remembering that the dance performance was not the only tribute that Salesian Rome paid to Vera Grita in the days leading up to her birthday: in the week between the Feasts of St Francis de Sales and Don Bosco, from 24 to 31 January, the Salesian Basilica of the Sacred Heart hosted an exhibition on Vera Grita curated by educator and artist Ilaria Mondati, consisting of eight panels explaining Vera Grita’s life and her biography, each accompanied by a work of art.