francesca, Autore presso POLIS Teatro Festival

Around festivals, along the tracks of summer. In Ravenna, for example
Roberto Canziani, QuanteScene!, April 29th 2025
https://robertocanziani.eu/quantescene/2025/04/29/in-giro-per-festival-2025-3/

Since 2025, POLIS Teatro Festival activates a Whatsapp chat group where spectators can ask for rides and accord for themselves so as to encourage carsharing and help people and the planet!

Join the group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/GLg2ZMzJ3IyJwEPpj3SLh4

Interview to Agata Tomšič / ErosAntEros curated by William Piana on Radio Città Fujiko Breakfast Club InScena, April 29th 2025.

More info: https://www.radiocittafujiko.it/

POLIS Teatro Festival on air on Radio Popolare within the program CULT, curated by Ira Rubini.

PODCAST to listen the presentation of the festival by Agata Tomšič. From min. 33 and 50 sec.

From May 2-11, 2025 Ravenna becomes the stage for the 8th edition of POLIS with two big surprises:

-> May 2-3, POLIS NEON, a section dedicated to Under35, with free access at Almagià;

-> May 6-11, IBERIAN FOCUS, an international focus on the Iberian Peninsula, with major artists from the European scene, national premieres, meetings and more.

Thanks to Les Bompart Produzioni for the super launch video!

Sunday, April 27th
h 12.15 pm
Porta Pratello
(via Pietralata, 58 – Bologna)

ErosAntEros – 8th edition of POLIS Teatro Festival and his Iberian Focus
curated by Hispania Asociación Cultural

within the program of Sant Jordi. Festa delle librerie indipendenti bolognesi

Free entry

Thursday, April 24th
h 6 pm
Fondazione Sabe per l’arte
(via G. Pascoli, 31 – Ravenna)

The press conference of the 8th edition of POLIS Teatro Festival will be held on April 29th at 12 pm at Sala Multimediale degli Antichi Chiostri Francescani – Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Ravenna (via Dante Alighieri 2/A – Ravenna)

The press conference is also streamed on the festival’s channels

On September 26th-27th ErosAntEros comes back to the stage in Ravenna with a third important event, organized by POLIS Teatro Festival, on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the company: an extraordinary event that will stage in Ravenna their two new productions – thanks to the support of the Special Projects 2025 of the Italian Ministry of Culture – a celebration enriched by moments of discussion with scholars, journalists, professionals and friends, who have nurtured the company’s journey over the years.

In 2025 we celebrate 3 important anniversaries: 15 years of ErosAntEros, 30 years since the death of Heiner Müller, and 50 years since the publication of The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula Le Guin. We do so by developing new best practices in research, production, programming, promotion and distribution of live performance, involving local and international audiences, within a project that supports and programs the two new performances by Agata Tomšič and Davide Sacco inspired by these artists.

A rich program, brought to international attention through a new collaboration with ATER Fondazione, accompanied by several side events such as: an international panel on Heiner Müller and a round table to celebrate the anniversary of the founding of ErosAntEros.

15 YEARS OF EROSANTEROS
September 26-27

Friday, September 26th

h 8 pm – Artificerie Almagià
Agata Tomšič Medea Material

h 9.30 pm – Artificerie Almagià
Round Table Medeas: Dialogues on a Despoiled Shore

Saturday, September 27th

h 5 pm – Teatro Rasi
Round Table 15 years ErosAntEros

h 8 pm – Teatro Rasi
Davide Sacco The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas

h 9.30 pm – Artificerie Almagià
Agata Tomšič Medea Material

h 11 pm – Manualetto
After Party with Clov dj set

Info and tickets: https://polisteatrofestival.org/tickets/?lang=en

In 2025, the festival opens on May 2nd-3rd at Artificerie Almagià with POLIS NEON, realized with the support of MiC and SIAE, as part of the “Per Chi Crea” program.

POLIS NEON is a special under35 section of POLIS 2025, which dedicates part of its 8th edition to theater companies founded in the last ten years, through a focus on the new languages of the contemporary scene. Four performances by four different collectives, Usine Baug e Mezzopalco, Ucci Ucci, Fettarappa/Guerrieri, Landi/Mignemi/Paris, that bring heterogeneous artistic languages to Ravenna to give expression to an often forgotten and exploited generation that critics and scholars struggle to define.

POLIS NEON, Greek for “the city of young people”, plays with the double meaning given by the word “neon”: it puts the polis in the hands of young people and sheds light on the performance research of four young groups that would otherwise be unlikely to find space on city stages. It is not just a showcase, but a place for artists and scholars to explore and discuss about and through the theater of the second wave of the 2000s.

POLIS is thus developed for the first time over a two-week period through an innovative project that promotes contemporary languages, featuring a special section dedicated to them, with completely free admission in order in order to reach as wide an audience as possible.

With the support of MiC and SIAE, as part of the “Per Chi Crea” program

Wednesday, March 26th
from 6 pm to 8 pm
at Sala giardino, Palazzo Rasponi dalle Teste
(via Luca Longhi, 9 – Ravenna)

APERI-POLIS
presentation of the program of POLIS Teatro Festival 2025 together with the presentation of Festival delle Culture 2025
followed by an iberian aperitif

Event within the programming of activities and initiatives of the Ravenna Welcome Talents project proposed by the LIBRAZIONE cooperative in collaboration with the Municipality of Ravenna. The calendar offers events designed specifically for the group of “Talents”, always trying to involve new ones.

more info: https://www.comune.ra.it/news/ravenna-welcome-talents-eventi-2025/

On February 28th 2025, the Italian Society of Authors and Publishers (SIAE) published the rankings of projects selected for the 2024 edition of the “Per Chi Crea” program. This program, promoted by the Ministry of Culture (MiC) and managed by SIAE, supports the creativity and cultural promotion of young artists under 35.

ErosAntEros is among the winners with the project POLIS NEON: Greek for “the city of youth”, an extraordinary section of POLIS Teatro Festival that dedicates part of its eighth edition to emerging theater companies.

Playing with the double meaning given by the word “neon”, the festival puts the polis in the hands of young people and sheds light on the performance research of young groups that would hardly find space on city stages. POLIS NEON therefore is not intended to be a mere showcase, but a place for artists and scholars to explore and discuss about and through the theater of the second wave of the 2000s.

More info soon!

Since 2025 POLIS Teatro Festival is an ecoevents certified festival.

Ecoevents is the certification that guarantees the low environmental impact of an event with high standards of sustainability involving all articulated aspects of the organization and audience experience.

Italiafestival, multidisciplinary association formed by some of Italy’s most prestigious festivals, of which POLIS Teatro Festival has been a part since 2023, thanks to its partnership agreement with Legambiente and Rete Ambiente e Salute, promotes the sustainability of cultural events through the dissemination of good social, environmental and economic practices. Ecoevents certification does exactly that: it supports the organization of events from the planning stage with the goal that each event actually improves its sustainability and leaves a positive legacy for the territory.

The Ecoevents protocol covers several key points such as waste management, logistics and mobility, communication, social ethical responsibility, and governance.

Learn how POLIS Teatro Festival implements its sustainability practices on the dedicated page: https://polisteatrofestival.org/sustainability/

The Visionari* project is back!
After the success of the last edition, ErosAntEros opens a new public call to allow citizens of all ages passionate about theater to choose two productions to be included in the program of POLIS Teatro Festival 2025.

What is L’Italia dei Visionari?
Every year a national call for proposals is opened for individual artists and emerging and independent companies that work professionally in contemporary theater, dance and performing art.
In each of the cities of the partners participating in the project a group of active spectators is formed, citizens who are passionate about theater and dance, the Visionari*, in charge of examining the videos of the performances received to choose those to be included in the programming of each of the organizations/ theaters/ festivals involved (each group in complete autonomy from the other groups).

Who are the Visionari*?
A group of spectators who are committed to see the work that the various companies have sent in response to the call of the national network L’Italia dei Visionari.

To join the group are not necessary particular skills, but curiosity and passion for theater and performing arts, as well as the willingness to meet between December 2024 and March 2025, for 4 meetings to choose the productions that will be included in the program of the festival.

How to participate?
To join the project, you have to fill out the registration form at this link by December 4th: https://forms.gle/q6W8iiscnLuc6xpf7

Free activity, upon registration with EROSANTEROS APS.

For more info: info@polisteatrofestival.org

APERITIVO VISIONARIO
First meeting to present the project: December 4th 2024, from 8 pm, at CittAttiva (via G. Carducci 14 – Ravenna).
The following meetings will take place monthly and will be announced on December 4th.

The Aperitivo Visionario’s buffet is courtesy of Conad, Via Cesarea ang. via Serra (Ravenna).

ErosAntEros – POLIS Teatro Festival enters again the national network L’Italia dei Visionari, a project promoted jointly by CapoTrave / Kilowatt (Sansepolcro AR), Festival Le Città Visibili (Rimini), Progetto Fertili Terreni Teatro (Torino), Pilar Ternera/NTC (Livorno) e Ass. Cult. Madame Rebinè / Ricò (San Quirino PN).

Every year a call is launched for individual artists and emerging and independent companies that operate professionally in contemporary theater, dance and performing arts.

CALL FOR ARTISTS 2025

There is time until November 13th 2024 (12 p.m.).

ErosAntEros is looking for an organizational-administrative figure for its company activities and for POLIS Teatro Festival.

Polis Festival, theater as a common language
Giulia Damiano, “Altre Velocità”, June 18th 2024
https://www.altrevelocita.it/polis-festival-il-teatro-come-lingua-comune/

Polis Teatro Festival 2024: interview with artistic directors Agata Tomšič and Davide Sacco
Sara Perniola, “PAC”, June 15th 2024
https://www.paneacquaculture.net/2024/06/15/polis-teatro-festival-2024-intervista-ai-direttori-artistici-agata-tomsic-e-davide-sacco-paneacquaculture/

Voicing the Unspoken: A Monologue Inspired by Brecht
李慧 Li Hui, May 28th 2024

Contribution created as part of the workshop OBSERVING THE CATASTROPHE, led by Tom Mustroph during POLIS 2024, thanks to the collaboration with Dipartimento di Beni Culturali dell’Università di Bologna and in particular with the Master’s program in International Cooperation on Human Rights and Intercultural Heritage.

“Disembodied noises emerging from the shadow, photographs with woman protesting on the street, red hoods over the monologue artist–these are the images that linger most from ErosAntEros’s latest production, “On The Difficulty of Telling the Truth” at the Polis Festival in Rasi Teatro, Ravenna.

This theatrical performance intertwines art, politics, and truth, blending sound, voice, and live performance to breathe life into Bertolt Brecht’s seminal essay “Writing the Truth: Five Difficulties.” Far beyond a mere play, it emerges as a vivid and dynamic political manifesto resonating deeply in today’s socio-political climate.

Drawing inspiration from Brecht’s 1934 essay, crafted amidst the chaotic aftermath of Hitler’s ascent to power, ErosAntEros transforms Brecht’s strategic guide for truth-telling into a 60-minute long theatrical narrative. Featuring the stage presence of Agata Tomsic and the live electronics of Davide Sacco, the production encapsulates Brecht’s core message: the indispensable virtues of courage, keenness, skill, judgment, and cunning in the pursuit of truth.

ErosAntEros employs Walter Benjamin’s “citation” technique, weaving threads of the past into the present tapestry to illuminate contemporary issues. This method transcends mere homage, offering a vibrant recontextualization that implores the audience to contemplate current realities and the enduring struggle against oppression and falsehood.

Agata Tomsic’s performance is nothing short of mesmerizing. Her mastery of voice modulation and facial expressions crafts a compelling and immersive experience. Tomsic effortlessly traverses various emotional landscapes, embodying the resilience needed to confront truth in the face of adversity. Her dynamic presence captivates the audience, fostering engagement and reflection throughout the performance.

A particularly memorable scene is when Agata Tomsic dons a red hood and uses a handheld speaker to yell out her lines. I tried to look at the English translation on the prompter to understand her words better, but I couldn’t avert my eyes from her. The raw emotion in her voice transcended the language barrier. Her cry for the truth to be told was palpable, resonating deeply with the audience and underscoring the universal struggle against deceit and suppression.

Davide Sacco’s live electronics provide an atmospheric backdrop, at times haunting, to the performance. The sound design enriches the thematic depth of the play, with electronic distortions and live manipulations underscoring the urgency of Brecht’s words. The synergy between Tomsic’s voice and Sacco’s soundscape creates a sensory journey, heightening the narrative impact.

The use of historical figures Confucius and Jonathan Swift illustrates the cunning required to disseminate truth by reinterpreting history. This clever manipulation serves as a poignant reminder of the power of language and narrative in shaping political realities.

Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” is a well-documented satirical pamphlet from 1729 that used extreme irony to criticize British exploitation of Ireland and to shock the audience into recognizing the severity of the situation. Swift’s method was indeed a cunning way to highlight and critique social and economic issues.

However, a deeper examination towards Confucius reveals an intriguing ambiguity. Despite my efforts to pinpoint a historical reference to “Ruler Kun” (in Brecht’s text ‘Ruler Hun’) mentioned in the play, none align with rulers during Confucius’ era (鲁襄公 (Lu Xianggong), 鲁昭公 (Lu Zhaogong), 鲁定公 (Lu Dinggong), and 鲁哀公 (Lu Aigong)). Also, the specific act of altering historical records in the manner described by Brecht is not documented. Yet, using historical figures in theater while taking creative liberties is a common practice. Perhaps the writer blends historical facts with fiction to serve his pedagogical goals, or maybe it is a deliberate challenge to the audience to discern the truth. I do not have a definite answer for that.

What I do know for certain is that art can be a discourse too. Just like how it’s portrayed in the monologue: “That is exactly what artistic creation is about: making something important.” When talking about discourse, people immediately think about how development reflects power relations in politics, but rarely about art. For the longest time, art has been seen as a source of comfort and relief, providing a refuge from the harsh realities of life or an oasis with therapeutic benefits. Even when one thinks of art as a means to convey truth, it often relates to personal and emotional truths, like Frida Kahlo’s self-portraits. But I never thought of art as a discourse involving power relations, which is especially true with theater. To be more specific, I think deep down I knew this to be true but had forgotten how powerful art can be in telling the truth since I’ve been marinated in Chinese theater for so long, which is all about literatry and immagination and does not portray power relations in the political status quo.

“On The Difficulty of Telling the Truth” emerges as a bold political statement, urging audiences to grapple with the complexities of truth-telling in a world tainted by oppression and suppression. As I watched Agata Tomsic’s performance with Davide Sacco’s soundscapes, I was reminded of the enduring power of theater to challenge, provoke, and inspire. This production didn’t just tell a story; it sparked a personal reflection on my own perceptions of truth and the role of art in our lives.

Having been immersed in Chinese theaters, which often lean towards escapism, this experience was a stark reminder of how potent and transformative theater can be when it tackles pressing social issues head-on. ErosAntEros’s daring approach made me reconsider the boundaries of art and its capacity to influence and reflect our socio-political realities. It was a deeply moving and thought-provoking experience that I won’t soon forget. It reignited my belief in the power of art to not only provide solace but also to serve as a powerful discourse, challenging us to confront the uncomfortable truths of our world.”

POLIS Teatro Festival 2024 has ended, successfully overcoming another challenge: it has consolidated itself as a festival of international contemporary theater, putting a German Focus at the center, but always keeping alive the festival’s participatory soul, which sees the spectators and their active involvement at the center.

Thank you to all the people who have been with us and supported us!

Here some photo by Dario Bonazza.

PROLOGUE – Wednesday, April 24th 2024