Istalia

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L'APPROFONDIMENTO|The sweet life of power: between parties, excesses and unbridled luxury.

News from the Istalian jet set, between lights and shadows

A shot from one of the most exclusive clubs on the Melfian Coast

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IL CORRIERE D'ISTALIA

April 5676 - International edition

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A gala dinner at the Porta Imperiale conference center last week became a national sensation. Not so much because of the presence of ministers and high-ranking officials, now accustomed to this kind of social gathering, but rather because of the authentic "after-party" atmosphere that followed the official reception. Champagne served until dawn, loud music and a host of international guests, from the world of film to high finance, transformed the Romulan nightlife into a glimpse into the glamorous life that has long enlivened Istalia's most exclusive salons.

While such occasions were once reserved for institutional ceremonies or select circles, today the boundary between high society and politics seems to have dissolved. The elite moves in a constant throng of vernissages, aperitifs on panoramic terraces and private parties in villas overlooking the sea. Here, managers and entrepreneurs toast alongside directors and TV starlets, while young scions of the entrepreneurship and nobility engage in conversation with bankers and digital influencers. In summer, the neon lights of Porto Aureo never go out. The "summer capital of luxury" has become the privileged stage for the Istalian jet set's nightlife.

During the years, incidents emerging from the gossip columns offer more than enough food for thought. Last month, a well-known film producer was arrested in Porto di Stabbia, on the Melfian Coast, with a large quantity of narcotics; a few days earlier, a scion of a historic industrial family made headlines for a brawl that broke out outside an exclusive club in Terrarossa, on the Sapphire Coast; last year the daughter of a well-known concrete magnate was caught by police in a car with 200 grams of hashish, which was immediately dismissed as "personal use"; the hospitalization of a famous television host for a drug overdose during a private cruise had made headlines three years ago, as well as the embarrassing photos of a well-known film producer, immortalized by paparazzi as he left a luxury hotel in the company of two escorts; a famous comedian photographed in a private nightclub while attending a strip party with dancers and TV starlets the last summer; a countess of the old Romulan nobility reported by a neighbor for nonstop parties in her villa, with music until dawn and a constant stream of luxury cars few years ago. And yet, the gossip columns are rife with details of wild nights and astronomical bills in five-star hotels.

In many cases, nothing criminally relevant and all episodes have no lasting consequences, but these pieces of the puzzle paint a picture of increasingly normalized excesses. Observers speak of a veritable "nightlife culture" that, especially during the summer months, dominates the lives of the elite. It's not uncommon to encounter institutional figures at private parties that start at midnight and end in the morning, amid reserved tables, bottles of champagne costing thousands of lire and impromptu performances by artists and starlets.

A regular at the Sapphire Coast says:

It's almost an obligation. If you're not there, you're left out. Here, it's not just million-lire contracts that are signed, here, they decide who really matters.

The line between work and pleasure, between representation and debauchery, is becoming blurred. It's not just politicians: bank managers, fashion entrepreneurs, singers and influencers are also an integral part of this network of parties, yacht parties and villa dinners.

Scholars note how, compared to twenty years ago, the threshold of social tolerance has shifted: what would once have been deemed "scandalous" is now perceived as an inevitable part of life in power.

Some see this unbridled nightlife as a symptom of moral decay: not so much for the individual incidents, but for the message they convey, says the criticisms, namely a society where respectability is no longer measured by values, but by the ability to display excess and debauchery as signs of prestige.