When
Saturday 26 November at 9.00 pm and 11.00 pm
Sunday 27 November at 6.00 pm, 9.00 pm and 11.00 pm
Where
Museo Civico di Fucecchio, Parco Corsini
Entrance and ticket office: Frantoio, Parco Corsini, 50054 Fucecchio (FI)
Limited places, booking essential
Press Office
Camilla Rigatti
In 1927, a psychiatric ward—commonly known as a ‘madhouse’—was established at Fucecchio Hospital as a branch of San Salvi, the Provincial Psychiatric Hospital of firenza. The maximum number of inpatients reached 130, all women, whom the people of Fucecchio called ‘the quiet ones’. In 1927, a psychiatric ward was established at the Fucecchio hospital as a branch of San Salvi, the Provincial Psychiatric Hospital of firenza. The maximum number of patients reached 130, all women, whom the people of Fucecchio called “the quiet ones”.
The patients lived in a state of confinement: they were always locked in their large rooms and could only get some fresh air on an open terrace enclosed by a very high metal fence. The asylum was closed on 12 October 1967.
LE TRANQUILLE is a play that touches on a variety of themes. Starting from local history – which reflects national history on a micro level – it addresses topics such as healthcare, marginalisation, and social and cultural customs, which form the backdrop to the patients’ experience within the hospital, before delving into their intimate condition as ‘different’. The audience is guided along a meandering journey, during which spectators become prying observers of the characters’ behaviour.
This new performance forms part of the Labirinti: Le ore del silenzio season, a project exploring fragments of stories of men and women from the late 19th century and throughout the 20th century, offering glimpses into their lives, lived almost entirely within the walls of a mental asylum. The Fucecchio asylum, long since closed, will serve as the starting point and inspiration for the research and collection of material that will then be presented in various forms: performances, installations, dramatic pieces, music, poetry: all these expressions of the theme form a documentary and exploratory journey into Madness. “Every human being is a labyrinth,” says Guidi. “For me, it is an urgent necessity to continue investing in individuals of all ages and to explore the twists, turns and deviations in a society where the concepts of identity, diversity, culture and belonging are in a state of constant flux.”
Director, writer and artistic director of Elan Frantoio, firenza Guidi has been creating theatre productions and films for fifteen years, drawing inspiration from events, memories and phenomena linked to both the local and universal spheres. The philosophy behind Elan Frantoio’s activities is to stage new dramas: new because the texts and stage designs are original, or new because they are by contemporary authors never before performed in our country.
The next event featuring Frantoio’s productions will be in January 2012. To mark Holocaust Remembrance Day, ECLISSI will be staged, a performance conceived and directed by Firenza Guidi and based on the stories of the first 10 female prisoners sent to the Sonderbau, or ‘Special House’, the first brothel established at Buchenwald and intended for use by prisoners of the Nazi concentration camp as an incentive to productivity.