Waiting for Godot while waiting for himself

1. Background of the project:

After 4 years working on “waiting for Godot” project using different medium, comes the opportunity to develop the project within the theater context.“Waiting for Godot while waiting for himself” is the newest version of this ongoing project that I have started in 2012, this new creation is an experimental theater project in collaboration with Associazione Cultural Laminarie and produced at DOM-la cupola del Pilastro Bologna

On the way to the theater DOM-la cupola del Pilastro 

The stage where the performance was shown 

The performance has taken the context of the theater and also its location, which is Pilastro where a lot of migrants are living and where there is a school to learn Italian for foreign women, and most of them happened to be Moroccan and have been established in Italy no les than 10 years but they didn’t learn Italian .The “yet”of this situation made me wonder why they have took so long in order to start to learn. And from here, comes my monologue for the performance.

1. The monologue:

After spending time with the women at the Italian school, I have decided to create a kind of dialogue between them and Godot, one from many.

The discussions with them helped me with Godot’s monologue.

So, for the sound aspect of the performance I have decided to recod the women and the monologue.

First, I have written the monologue in English and then, I decided to translate it in Italian, so I could put myself in the place of women.

I  do exist in my mindI do exist in your mindsI do exist, I do exist, I do exist.Do you smell my presence, do you? do you? Inhale me then. I do exist. I m just holding the lightI m complete, but I m just holding the light Into your minds my mind existsI  m you, I m you, am I ?I m a wasted breath inside a balloon.I m a worker who didn’t find a work yet.I m a homeless who didn’t find a home yet. I m a swimmer who didn’t find a sea yet.I m a traveler who didn’t find a destination yet. I m the “yet” that we use at the end of a sentence when a work is  undone. I m the “yet”I m completely incomplete  when I m not holding the light. I m a dishonored commitment.I m a missed appointment.I m an unfinished movement Movement? Movement?  Movement? I m a mimicry of movement.Who puts movement in this monologue? Movement? Movement? Movement? Who? Who? Who? Me? Me? Me. Yes it’s me who has put my movements on someone’s shoulders.The kids, the family, the conditions, the time, the wife, the husband, the mother, the dad, the country, the sex, the second sex, the third sex, the society, the traditions , the pretexts .The pretexts, the pre-texts, the “pre”I am the prefix that we use in a word because we are so lazy to invent a new word. I am the other ramblings of myself.I am the “There” that is not yet the “ here” I am Godot who waits for himself to come.  

1. The visual aspect of the performance:

My encounter with the women was a stimulating part of this project.From their talks they told me they were feeling incomplete because of the ignorance of the language, so whatever daily task they needed to do they have to be with someone else in order to communicate.From here, came the idea of the visual part of the performance choosing a specific light in order to show half of the body.

Just one half of the body was shown, During the whole performance, the top and the down of my body.The light was punctual in order to see just the body and the whole place had the be dark. I used also another two punctual lights to enlighten the public at some specific moments during the monologue which are “IO SONO TE”

1. The sound

The sound was a compilation of the women’s talks and Godot’s monologue.

1. The perfume

I have created a very strong perfume, the ambiance was submerged by its scent, in one point of the monologue:Do you smell my presence, do you? do you? Inhale me then.the public get a sort of reminder to the perfume in that way he is engaged more with the performance.

1. The performance