Ugo Mayer, the Roman pensioner who reads fairy tales to children in schools.

Ugo Mayer is a very special grandfather. A former Cotral employee and industrial engineer, he retired after years of working as a subway attendant in the capital. Perhaps it was precisely thanks to this job, which puts you in contact with thousands of people every day, that Ugo learned, as if he were an actor, an extraordinary mimic. He can contract his face, make any sound and imitation, master the timbre of his voice, noises and mockery, as if he were on the stage of a ,.

While attending the scout group, Ugo experimented his acting skills with the boys, until he decided to take an important leap, and to try your hand at nursery schools. So, at the principal's invitation, he went to the "Giorgio Franceschi" school in the Roman neighborhood of Monteverde, and here three times a week he began to talk to the children. Becoming more than an actor, a live narrator, under the stage name "grandpa Ugo." He has told stories, fables, and dialogues. All in simple language and with extraordinary ability to mimic. He has ranged from Italo Calvino to classic children's literature, also unearthing original and new stories online. Grandpa Ugo says: "My first job is to rework a story and make it suitable for the children I meet. Then I have to be able to captivate them with mimicry and the right words. Finally, it's they who inspire me..." Congratulations to Ugo Mayer, and let's hope we see many grandparents like him around Italian schools!