The teaching of grammar cannot be separated from the teaching of vocabulary, but it is often the case that teachers fail to treat vocabulary with due importance and prefer to focus on explaining grammar instead. Very often the same attitude is reflected in textbooks, which do not teach lexicon in a systematic and organized manner, offering merely sporadic exercises presenting new words and neglecting those aimed at retention and re-use of newly acquired vocabulary. Recently, many scholars in the field of Italian as SL/L2 have undertaken regular studies on the “living language” and its application in teaching. In fact, authentic materials present various examples of language, registers, dialects, regional variations, diversity of styles and multiple thematic situations. What is more, contextualisation of the language increases the level of comprehension and, in consequence, learner’s motivation. The aim of the article is to present a proposal of using a video material available on youtube, which summarizes the historical novel par excellence of Italian literature, for didactic purposes.