Rain, Lava, and Love: Mario & Hans's Wedding at Cantina Scudero on the Slopes of Etna

Love Story

Mario first saw Hans in London in 2017, during the years he spent studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He caught a glimpse of him across a room — and that was it. A first glance that stayed with him.
Their real story began a few years later, at the beginning of 2020. They met again backstage at a VIP party, after one of Mario's performances. Two worlds colliding in the most theatrical setting imaginable: an actor from Catania, deeply rooted in Sicily and the performing arts, and Hans — described by their wedding planner Laura La Piana as "the most elegant and refined man Mario had ever met" — a gentleman from Nuremberg whose family has been in the printing trade since the 16th century, with a deep love for typography, traditional craftsmanship, and aesthetics.
"He was immediately captivated by Mario's exuberant personality," Laura recalls, "admiring his charm, his temperament, and his deep, unconditional love for his homeland."
From that backstage meeting in 2020, they never separated. Mario eventually moved to Hannover to be with Hans, carrying Sicily with him wherever he went.

About Your Wedding

From the very first planning conversation, it was clear that this wedding was not going to be about décor alone. It was going to be about a feeling — specifically, the feeling Mario gets every time he returns to Catania.
"From the very beginning, a natural connection was created between us," says Laura La Piana of Charme e Stile Eventi. "By the end of that first conversation, it was already clear that their celebration would become a destination wedding filled with love and awareness."
The couple's vision was intimate by design — a small gathering of close friends and family traveling from England, Germany, France, Norway, and Italy — united by one intention: to experience Sicily through Mario's eyes. The style they chose was chic yet deeply rooted in Sicilian culture. Warm yellows, oranges, and peachy tones with touches of blue — the colours of the Sicilian sun and the Mediterranean sea. Terracotta pine cones and glazed ceramics. Rich floral arrangements paired with glass candelabras and warm-toned candles. And an imperial table designed not for formality, but for connection.
The wedding took approximately one year to plan — built almost entirely through emails and video calls from Hannover, with complete trust placed in Laura's hands. "The couple, placing complete trust in my sensitivity and experience, gave me the freedom to start planning," she recalls.

Grooms Getting Ready

The morning of May 12th, 2025, began at a B&B in the heart of Catania — the city that has always been Mario's emotional anchor. He and Hans spent those early hours together, sharing quiet and intimate moments before the ceremony. No separation, no tradition pulling them apart. Just the two of them, and everything they were about to say to each other.

Photoshoot Before The Ceremony

Before making their way to Cantina Scudero, the couple moved through the streets of central Catania for their pre-ceremony shoot — baroque architecture, volcanic stone, and a city that has known Mario his whole life. That morning, it met Hans too. The images captured there carry the particular energy of a city that feels like home to one person, and like a discovery to another — and somehow, both at once.

Ceremony

Sicily, as it turned out, had its own ideas about how the day should unfold.
The ceremony had been planned outdoors on the lawn in front of the vineyards, framed by an arch and a view of the Ionian Sea. Then the rain arrived. What followed was not panic — it was something much more beautiful.
"The rain dissolved any tension," Laura recalls. "Together with my staff, the florists, musicians, the celebrant, fireworks team, as well as the catering and photography teams, we worked in perfect harmony."
In less than forty minutes, the entire setup was moved into the old winery cellar — stone walls, low light, the smell of aged wood and earth. The guests watched the transformation unfold with curiosity and amusement, becoming part of the story rather than spectators to it. What the rain took away in the open sky, it was replaced with something more intimate, more cinematic, more them.
"Despite the unexpected rain, the entire team created an intimate and atmospheric setting," the couple reflected, "while guests watched the preparations with curiosity and excitement."

Photoshoot After The Ceremony

Wedding Venue & Decor

Laura had a place in mind almost immediately — one she had been quietly saving for exactly the right couple.
Cantina Scudero is an ancient country house belonging to the Baroni Scudero family, nestled near San Giovanni Montebello on the slopes of Mount Etna. In front of the house, centuries-old vines stretch across the land. Beyond them, the Ionian Sea. And behind, the unmistakable silhouette of the volcano.
"The interiors resembled the home of a Sicilian grandmother," Laura describes. "Simple and authentic. This combination would make guests feel at home while at the same time leaving them in awe of a breathtaking landscape."
When Mario and Hans visited for the site inspection, the decision required no deliberation. As Laura simply puts it: "It was love at first sight."
The décor told the story of Sicily without ever feeling folkloric. Terracotta pine cones, glazed ceramics, and rich floral arrangements filled the space in warm tones of yellow, orange, and peach with touches of blue. Glass candelabras and candles cast a glow across the imperial table — a table designed not for formality, but for the kind of long, unhurried dinner where conversations deepen and memories are made. At each place setting, a personalized Sicilian tambourine waited — a detail that began as décor and ended as a full celebration instrument by the end of the night.

Reception

Dinner unfolded inside the country house, with the full warmth of the Sicilian aesthetic surrounding every guest. The catering by Clerici Catering, led by Chefs Anastasi and Rizzo, brought Sicilian tradition to the table in the most refined sense — each course received its own round of compliments as it left the kitchen.
The detail that moved everyone most deeply was quieter than the setting itself. Mario and Hans had written a personal letter for every single guest — a dedicated message placed at each seat. "A deeply emotional gesture," as they described it, "that moved everyone."
And then, just before dinner ended, Laura approached Mario with something to tell him.
"The sky has cleared," she whispered, "and as a gift, Mount Etna is putting on an incredible show with lava fountains and flowing lava."
Mario looked at her in disbelief. Throughout every planning call, he had quietly hoped for this — that his international friends might experience what he had always known: the particular mix of awe and fear that the volcano can evoke. "Really?" he exclaimed.
The evening moved to the terrace. Above them, Etna performed. Below, the dessert buffet, the fine wines, the cake cutting, and eventually the first dance — to La Cura by Franco Battiato, a song about devotion so complete it borders on the sacred. Dancing and laughter carried the night forward from there.
"It felt like living inside a real photographic set," Mario and Hans later wrote. "Everything was so perfect, carefully curated, and harmonious that every moment seemed suspended in time. An ocean of tears — but the beautiful kind, filled with joy and gratitude."