Mara Venier su Domenica In: Il misterioso ospite che ho scelto

Mara Venier is returning with a new season of Domenica In on September 17th. As always, the show will air at 2:00 PM on Rai Uno. On Thursday, September 14th, the host, along with Rai’s Director of Daytime Entertainment, Angelo Mellone, held a press conference to present the program’s new features. “This edition will have even more energy, more facets, more uniqueness, and will be even more comprehensive…a storytelling of Italy through special stories.” This year, there will be more focus on current events and an exploration of different languages and narrative styles.

During the conference, Venier didn’t hesitate to take a jab at those who accept invitations to the show but then demand to have a say in the questions they will be asked. “They come to Domenica In and ask you, ‘Don’t ask them this, don’t ask them that.’ Then they go to Belve and tell everything.” “Aunt” Mara then decided to name names and shared some anecdotes from behind the scenes. She talked about Arnold Schwarzenegger, whom she interviewed in a hotel. During the interview, he was annoyed by the simultaneous translation. He threw his earpiece to the ground three times without picking it up, forcing a sound technician to do it. “Good, yes, but stupid, no,” said the host. She then asked her assistant to translate to the star that if he did it again, she would tell him to “f**k off.” Another bad experience was with pop star Madonna, who made her wait for over five hours: “I said no, I was already in bed.”

The host aims for spontaneity in her interviews. “The goal is to always get something different from each interview,” Venier said. She then revealed some guests for the first episode, including Daniela (the mother of Giogiò Cutolo, a young man recently killed in Naples), the band Pooh, Carlo Verdone, Matteo Garrone, The Kolors, and Matteo Bocelli. Regarding interviews, Aunt Mara shared that the night before the show, she studies the life and career of the guests and then lets her instinct guide her during the broadcast. She emphasizes spontaneity. “I memorize three concepts, sit in front of the guest, look them in the eyes, and go from there. Above all, I listen; I am curious, I deeply love the person in front of me. I fall in love with the guest, I put my whole heart into trying to understand who I have in front of me. It doesn’t always happen, but that’s mostly how the interview is born.”