Teatro Povero ed estate teatrale in Toscana
Every year, the people of Monticchiello, a town in the Province of Siena, create, produce and perform a show – it is a unique, regional event and the only one of its kind in Italy. Everyone participates in the show that is also known as autodramma and people flock from all over the country to see it.
This year marks the 44th edition: up to 14 August Piazza della Commenda and the streets of this Medieval hamlet will host this unusual event. Director, Andrea Cresti will present a play that deals with the problems of the young, how hard it is for them to find steady jobs and to plan for the future; the show casts a watchful eye on corruption and how it spreads and becomes the backdrop for the businesses of those who have their fingers in the pie, so to speak.
Volterra, the “city of alabaster” – which is not too far away – will be hosting a festival up through the beginning of August: Armando Punzo who is the artistic director of his company works in the city’s prison all year and stages his shows there too!
There will be many visiting productions and companies such as Ascanio Celestini, Il Teatro delle Albe Marco Martinelli, dancing by Caterina Sagna (an Italian choreographer who lives in France) and a new piece by the young Florentine playwright, Stefano Massoni. And there will be lots of entertainment for children, with music and theater on the streets. One of the most interesting is definitely transumanza with the audience chasing a flock of sheep in a sort of collective performance with lots of meanings…and there will also be plenty of time for poetry and movies.
Still in the same general area, we must mention the On the Road Festival at Pelago and Mercanzia at Certaldo two well-established events where the street is the stage; two Medieval hamlets offer incredibly beautiful backdrops for the performing arts.
Castiglioncello (in the Province of Livorno) will host the Inequilibrio Festival of Contemporary Theater and Dance, at the Castello Pasquini where established and up-and-coming avant-garde performers have been coming together for years.
