Grosseto. Art can transform spaces and rekindle minds and hearts, and the Barbanella district, in Grossetois living proof of this.
Saturday 18 May, from 4pmresidents and visitors are invited to participate in the event which represents the culmination of the “BarbaBella” cultural project, dedicated to the suburbs and promoted by the Clan association, with the contribution of the Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze Foundation, the patronage of the Municipality of Grosseto and in collaboration with Compagnia dei Cosi and Kansassiti Aps.
The project
Inaugurated last December, the “BarbaBella” project offered the inhabitants of the area the opportunity to take part in creative workshops, theater workshops open to all and film screenings curated by the Maremma digital media library, in order to promote social inclusion, promote the active participation of citizens and improve the quality of life of an area usually cut off from the cultural events of the Maremma capital.
The day of May 18th will be a real celebration in which art, theater and cinema they will mix in a rich program, aimed at adults and children.
The program of initiatives
The event will begin at 4pm with a creative workshop for the little ones, an opportunity for families to introduce children to the world of art in a playful and interactive way. But the beating heart of the event will be “Barbanella Republic”a theatrical walk that will start at 6.30pm and will guide spectators on an immersive journey through the streets of the neighborhood, offering a new perspective on the place and its community.
The traveling show, organized by the Compagnia dei Cosi, is the result of an engaging free theater workshop for beginners and non-beginners, conducted by Gaia Rum and Angelo Callegari, starting last February. The texts and scenes are the result of extensive research on the neighborhood and its history by the company, through interviews, writings and testimonies of those who live there or have lived there in the past, and aim to give spectators back the soul of these places.
No less important, in this sense, will be the subsequent screening of the documentary “Barbanella Republic”, created by Gomma Colla, a production company founded by Maremma photographers and videomakers Luca Deravignone and Francesco Rossi. The film includes interviews with the neighborhood’s residents and offers an authentic look at their stories and Barbanella’s cultural roots.
Following this, archive videos recovered from the Maremma digital media library will be screened, a treasure that tells the stories and traditions of this corner of Tuscany.
The evening will be further enriched with the live music of the young soloist Dario Canalsinger, musician, composer and artistic director of Bike Garage and More in Massa Marittima, where he is originally from.
On its festive notes, the new one will be inaugurated and presented to the public muralvisual symbol of the event, created by the artist Costanza Rosi, on the facade of the social promotion center of Barbanella, the space that hosted most of the project’s activities.
Originally from Castagneto Carducci, Rosi is already known to the Grosseto public for having taken part in the 2023 “Trame” festival, painting one of the shutters of the historic center which were brought to new life for the occasion. Her work, inspired by the novel “The Baron in the Trees” by Italo Calvino, portrays the protagonist of the book Cosimo Piovasco di Rondò and was one of the most popular among the over forty shutters that color the streets inside the walls.
For the “BarbaBella” project, the artist decided to pay homage to the neighborhood and its residents, representing symbols and characteristic moments of the place. In the drawing, among other things, there are also references to the tiles of Ina Casa, the body entrusted with the construction and management of the public housing in the area, which are still visible in some buildings.
At the end of the event, there will be a happy hour cwhich will represent the ideal moment to socialize, exchange opinions on what we have seen and connect with the local community.
Transforming disused spaces into places of socialisation, social cohesion and creativity, actively involving those who live there every day, is the aim of initiatives like these, in which we hope that citizens will participate with enthusiasm and curiosity so that it is possible to think of themselves in a city happy and, even more so, building it.
The “BarbaBella” project is curated by Clan Aps, in collaboration with Kansassiti Aps, and La Compagnia dei Cosi Aps, created with the contribution of the Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze Foundation and the patronage of the Municipality of Grosseto.
For further details on the event and to stay updated on future Clan initiatives, you can follow their updates on social media: Facebook and Instagram @collectivoclan.
Contacts: [email protected].
