On the evening of 11 September, as part of the XI St. Petersburg International United Cultures Forum, the Russian House in Rome presented the exhibition "Blue on Blue: Ceramics of the Twin Cities of Gzhel and Deruta" in the spaces of the St. Petersburg State Academic Capella. The exhibition was opened by Evgeny Primakov, Head of Rossotrudnichestvo; Olga Khomova, General Director of the Capella; Daria Pushkova, Director of the Russian House in Rome; and Galina Golinkova, Deputy Director of the Gzhel Association. The display features works from two leading centers of national ceramic production. In 2018, Gzhel became the first city with which Deruta signed a twinning agreement. Artisans from the two leading centers created items especially for this unique joint project. Specialists from Deruta hand-painted tableware in shades of blue as a tribute to the traditions of their counterparts from the Russian twin city.
The first day of the United Cultures Forum concluded with a vibrant concert by the St. Petersburg House of Music under the direction of People's Artist of Russia and professor Sergei Roldugin. As part of the "Russia's Musical All-Star Team" series, and accompanied by the Capella Symphony Orchestra, the performers included the House of Music's Artistic Director and cellist Sergei Roldugin; Fedor Osver, oboist and laureate of the XVII International Tchaikovsky Competition; and international competition laureates pianist Elizaveta Klyucherova and violinist Emil Ildirekov. The program featured music by Tchaikovsky to mark the composer's 185th anniversary, including excerpts from the Violin Concerto and First Piano Concerto, the instrumental Nocturne, as well as Lensky's Aria and the Polonaise from the opera Eugene Onegin. The conductor was People's Artist of Russia Alexander Chernushenko.