A fortified farmhouse, three stages and a tree in the middle of the floor: SELVA has opened in Sicily

SELVA Club Natura has opened in Ragusa, Sicily — the first venue in the Iblean territory with a year-round programme focused on underground dance music. Its first night was on Friday 14 August.

The opening was covered by Mixmag.

The club has taken over a fortified farmhouse in the countryside, a stone's throw from the beaches of Marina di Ragusa. Inside are three stages: a central open-air space called Cavea and two indoor rooms, Ballatoio and Scuderie, built for the autumn and winter programme.

Sound, light and a pizzeria

The space has been fitted with a d&b audiotechnik system and immersive lighting, and the venue itself is, by the organisers' description, designed for "long nights outdoors". Alongside it runs its own pizzeria, Flora — a multi-purpose terrace overlooking the surroundings, with food and a music programme of its own.

"Nature, music, people… A frontier club, where untouched landscapes of stone and wilderness exist like works in progress," reads the description on SELVA's website.

Who has played and who is coming

The opening parties were played by Raresh and Roi Perez. Among the artists announced since is Satoshi Tomiie. The programme is not meant to rest on visitors alone, though: the club promises regular slots for DJs from the region and describes itself as a "community space".

For southern Italy this is a rare construction. Summer dancefloors there usually live for three months and close with the tourist season; SELVA was built from the start with two indoor rooms for precisely the moment the terrace gets cold.

As reported earlier by ONE//FM, Belfast also opened a space this year built around one specific way of listening to music.