FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 3, 2026
As Italy Launches UNESCO Bid for Neapolitan Song,
New Toronto Musical Revives Forgotten Chapter of Immigration History
"A Musical About Ice Cream Based on True Events and Packed with Iconic Songs We All Know — Can It Get Sweeter Than That?"
— Denise Lai, Ludwig Van Toronto
TORONTO, ONTARIO — In the wake of Italy's June launch of its UNESCO candidacy for the Neapolitan song tradition, award-winning producer Loredana Cunti presents a free last performance of Neapolitan Ice Cream: The Musical on Monday, July 6, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. at the Nancy and Ed Jackman Performance Centre.
Following three sold-out performances, this new jukebox musical celebrates the timeless songs of Naples and the iconic arias of Italy while bringing to light the remarkable, little-known stories of the people who carried them—only to find themselves, through deceit, diverted to Scotland and Wales instead of the new lives they had set out to build in North America.
Weaving English-language intimate storytelling through monologue with beloved Italian song, the musical brings to life world-famous Neapolitan classics—including Funiculì Funiculà and 'O Sole Mio—alongside iconic Italian arias.
These iconic songs have travelled the world for more than a century, interpreted by everyone from Jewish cantors and legendary tenors to pop icons including Pavarotti, Elvis Presley, Bryan Adams, and Chubby Checker. Blending soaring soprano, guitar, accordion, and gelato, Neapolitan Ice Cream: The Musical is a celebration of love, loss, resilience, and reinvention.
The 60-minute performance concludes with a complimentary scoop of gelato, bringing the story full circle through the very treat that became part of the immigrants' new lives.
WORLD-CLASS PERFORMERS
Winner of the 2024 Canada Council Virginia Parker Prize and hailed by CBC as "a wizard of the accordion," Dr. Michael Bridge has performed everywhere from Yellowknife to the Metropolitan Opera.
He is joined by soprano Reilly Bianchi-Nelson, , whose performance the Caledon Citizen described as "a virtuoso performance… befitting the Four Seasons Centre or venerable Massey Hall."
Italian Canadian guitarist Tonino Chiodo brings warmth, virtuosity, and authentic soul to every performance.
Special guest one of Toronto's best-loved Italian Canadian entertainers, Claudio Santaluce, adds a surprise element to the evening.
AUDIENCE AND CRITICAL ACCLAIM
Classical music lovers have taken particular note of the production's operatic calibre. The Caledon Citizen's Jim Stewart wrote:
"If you closed your eyes and fell into the soaring tones of Bianchi-Nelson, it was easy to imagine yourself at Teatro alla Scala in Milan."
For immigrants and their second- and third-generation descendants, the story hits close to home.
"It resonates because it's not only my story—my grandmother went from Portugal to India to Canada—but it's Italian people, my Vietnamese friends... we've all had this uprising," said Gillian DidierSerre, audience member at the Columbus Centre, Toronto.
"It's the immigrant experience—the hardships and the dreams," said Tina Mancini, Italian Canadian audience member, Caledon, Ontario.
"Neapolitan Ice Cream: The Musical is my love letter to the immigrant journey, woven from the stories my parents and paesani told and the songs my Nonna sang. Traditions survive when each generation rediscovers them for itself and my hope is that audiences discover a new way to experience these songs and be inspired to pass them on. At its heart, it's about reinvention, and the belief that even in the hardest of times, joy can be found in something as simple as a song or scoop of ice cream," said creator and producer Loredana Cunti."
The production has already attracted local and international media attention, with coverage by TLN, Mediaset in Italy, and CHIN Multicultural Radio, Caledon Citizen and King Weekly Sentinel.
Building on the success of its sold-out performances, Neapolitan Ice Cream: The Musical returns to Toronto on November 13, 2026, at the Columbus Centre. The production is currently seeking presenting, touring, and development partners as it continues to expand to new audiences.
EVENT DETAILS
Neapolitan Ice Cream: The Musical
Monday, July 6, 2026 | 7:00 p.m.
Nancy and Ed Jackman Performance Centre
877 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
Admission: Free. This performance is currently at capacity. Media are welcome to attend by advance arrangement.
MORE INFORMATION
www.iloredana.com/neapolitan-ice-cream
MEDIA CONTACT
Loreworks Ltd.
Loredana Cunti
+1 416-317-7600
loredana@loreworks.ca
Performers also available for media interviews.
ABOUT LOREWORKS LTD.
Founded by award-winning author and producer Loredana Cunti, Loreworks Ltd. is a Toronto-based production company creating original books, live experiences, and cultural storytelling projects that celebrate resilience, immigrant heritage, and intergenerational connection.
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