By Nick Squires
Rome: Romans are furious about an “insulting” deal to allow tourists to dress up as gladiators and stage mock fights in the Colosseum.
Critics say the deal between Airbnb and the Colosseum will trivialise the arena, transforming it into a theme park and “offending the dignity of the most important monument of ancient Rome”.
Critics say the deal between Airbnb and the Colosseum will “trivialise” the arena and transform it into “a theme park”.Credit: New York Times
The announcement coincides with the release of Gladiator II, directed by Ridley Scott and starring Denzel Washington and Paul Mescal.
Under the deal, Airbnb has agreed to donate $US1.5 million ($2.3 million) to the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum to upgrade a permanent exhibition inside the amphitheatre. In return, 16 Airbnb customers will be able to don sandals and helmets and take part in faux gladiator fights in the ancient arena.
The guests will emerge into the middle of the Colosseum via tunnels that were used by gladiators 2000 years ago, a scene that was memorably portrayed in the first Gladiator film, starring Russell Crowe.
They will battle at sunset after the Colosseum has closed to the public.
Paul Mescal as Lucius, the lost prince of Rome, in Gladiator II.
The public can apply to participate in the experience between November 27 and December 10, and will be chosen by lottery. The “fights” are set to take place in May.
The plan has been heavily criticised by Rome city council and its residents.
Enzo Foschi, a city councillor from the centre-left Democratic Party, said: “Having taken possession of the historic centre of Rome, making it into a huge theme park, now they want to trivialise the Colosseum. Rome is not Disneyland.”
Massimiliano Smeriglio, the city councillor in charge of culture, said the announcement of the deal left him “perplexed to say the least”.
“We cannot transform one of the most important monuments in the world into a theme park,” he wrote on social media. “The Airbnb promotion goes in the opposite direction to the one we are pursuing ... that of a heritage that is usable and accessible to everyone – tourists and Romans.”
He said Airbnb should cancel the “tourist-gladiator show” while still donating the $US1.5 million. That would demonstrate that the company was “a friend of Rome, protecting its unique artistic heritage without transforming it into a theme park”.
Viviana Piccirilli di Capua, of the residents’ association of Rome’s historic centre, said: “This initiative is an insult to the city’s World Heritage status.”
Some welcomed the deal with Airbnb. Federico Mollicone, the head of a parliamentary culture commission and a member of Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party, said: “We are absolutely in favour of the agreement between public and private in culture, through partnerships or sponsorships, provided that they support initiatives that are of scientific and cultural value approved by the ministry of culture.”
Amid the growing row over the deal, the Colosseum put out a statement saying the objective of the accord was to promote “immersive activities in full respect of the monument, based on rigorous historical research”.
The gladiator experience would “bring an increasingly wider audience closer to the cultural richness of the amphitheatre”. The gladiatorial sparring would have no impact on access to the site because it would take place “outside opening hours”.
The Gruppo Storico Romano, an association that re-enacts gladiatorial fights, said the Airbnb event would be based on “solid historical and scientific foundations, the result of rigorous research” on how gladiators trained, fought and were equipped.
Critics accuse short-term let platforms such as Airbnb of damaging the social fabric of cities such as Rome, Florence, Venice and Bologna by fuelling overtourism and promoting a market that drives up rents and makes housing unaffordable for locals.
Rome is among the Italian cities plagued by overtourism.Credit: Getty Images, digitally tinted
A group of residents’ associations said that short-term lets for tourists were causing the “abandonment of entire quarters of the city, devoured by hyper-tourism and a drastic reduction of properties” available for locals.
In Florence, campaigners embarked on a guerilla blitz in which they stuck red tape in the shape of a cross over the key boxes, which have become a much-resented symbol of the burgeoning short-term rental market.
The tape bears the words “Salviamo Firenze per viverci” or “Let’s save Florence so we can live here”.
Federico Maria Sardelli, a resident and orchestra director, said: “The city is being emptied of inhabitants because of this tourism model.”
The Telegraph, London
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