The evening dedicated to the performances generated by the texts selected through the Food & Memory call took place in Pesaro at the Church of the SS.ma Annunziata last April 28th. The aim of the Call was to collect stories originating from a memory, a suggestion related to food.

The three finalists, Vladislav Gaspari, Francesca Persichini and Erik Pollini, followed a mentoring path led by the theatrical directors Michelangelo Bellani and Caroline Baglioni to adapt the texts and bring them to the stage in a public sharing.

In each performance, the food cited by the text has become a symbol and tool to tell a personal story: Erik Pollini’s grandmother’s lasagne has become a refuge for a sensitive and bullied child, coffee with lokum, a way to stay hooked to reality and do not succumb to the nightmare of memories for the protagonist of Vladislav Gaspari’s story, the pancakes cooked by Anna, in the text by Francesca Persichini, smell of rebellion, they speak to us of love and freedom.

The performances, also thanks to the wise technical guidance of the directors, surprised the audience and the jury for the strength of the proposed themes. If it is true that theatre is the oldest instrument of collective catharsis, it is equally true that it needs the energy of young people, their stories to fulfil this role today.

The jury chaired by Professor Anna Marie Fisker – Aalborg University (project leader) proclaimed not one but three winners in a memorable moment for the audience and young participants.