The association MAESTRO - Performing Artists from Zeffirelli Foundation has come to life inspired by Maestro Zeffirelli's desire to create a training centre for the performing arts, in the home of his foundation, capable of attracting new talents who, starting from his works and teachings, would know how to treasure them in order to give it continuity, thereby renovating theatrical and cinematographic practice, but remaining truthful and faithful to the fundamental spirit of the work to be performed, that is, to the truth, filtered through past memory, that makes great works still relevant in our modern day. For this reason we, the students of Franco Zeffirelli Foundation Onlus, decided to found this association of students guided by a deep passion and sense of belonging to our Maestro's poetics, tied by a sense of purpose, in perfect harmony with the objectives and cultural and educational goals that Zeffirelli Foundation pursues. The areas we choose to focus on and in which we decide to operate cover all disciplines in the fields of art, theatre and movies, driven by a profound ideal of change that makes the recovery of a new 'Cultural Humanism' possible.

It is from Italy and from Florence, cradle of countless beauties and custodian of an extraordinary cultural heritage, that we launch our association's manifesto to the world, reaffirming our existence as individuals tied to their roots and to a certain artistic method, exemplified by the life of Maestro Zeffirelli, whose footsteps we propose to follow, against the widespread emptying of content.
Confident that it is the duty of art to reaffirm the centrality of man in society, we want to help infuse art with humanity so that it can once again become both an expression of the people and their ideals.

• We, members of the association are bound by a sense of purpose, strengthened by the human relationship we share, which stems from the study of opera and the teachings of our Maestro Franco Zeffirelli in whom we all identify; 
• The association arose from the need to respond to the profound crisis of content that affects part of today's theatrical practice, which has lost its sense of making art starting from the sincere interpretation of the opera, through the study and development of multidisciplinary projects capable of expressing the supremacy of art performed through the contribution of various professional and artistic skills; 
• Our art-making is developed through a project that, as in a "bottega" - workshop, makes use of the collaboration of several professional artistic and technical skills, in a profound spirit of teamwork involving real synergy among its members; 
• A director is the creator of the performance capable of giving substance to an individual artistic expression in collaboration with other artistic and professional profiles; 
• Theatre, cinema, art and the performing arts in general represent a kind of magical work, i.e. culture in action, a tool to understand both individual and social dynamics; 
• We propose the re-evaluation of art in the name of a higher understanding, that is, an understanding of spiritual reality that can also be reached through poetic intuition; 
• Opera is theatre, a scenic and musical event which educates society while providing testimony: the director's task is to make this testimony understandable and relevant while respecting the fundamental truth of the opera; 
• We pursue the interpretation of the spirit of opera interpreted and acted out by a contemporary eye, through a performance which places the stage at the service of the drama; 
• We fight for the creation of a theatrical theatre: a truly alive theatre. 
• We aim to study, promote and protect all of Maestro Zeffirelli's artistic heritage and the aims of his Foundation, acting as executive support for its activities.