Roma Heroes Festival
ROMA HEROES – International Romani Theatre Festival – Generations
Rome, Budapest, and Bucharest are the three European capitals that have been united since 2018 in hosting the International Romani Theatre Festival, a meeting place where theater becomes a means of social inclusion and a tool for artists from various European countries to collaborate in creating and spreading dramaturgy and performances that tell a contemporary, innovative, and unprecedented narrative of the Romani community. The festival is part of the Diverse Roma Theaters for Inclusive Europe project, sponsored by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency. In 2023, after the first Romanian event in September, the festival will take place in Rome from October 2 to 8 and will conclude in Hungary in November.
THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL ROMANI THEATRE FESTIVAL IN ITALY
Promoted by Rampa Prenestina, the festival celebrates theater by artists from diverse backgrounds, representing the richness and complexity of European Romani culture. The program includes performances, workshops by master artists, thematic meetings, and exhibitions exploring a wide range of themes, including identity, culture, representation, discrimination, and resilience. It offers an opportunity to learn about the challenges and triumphs of Romani communities and celebrate their uniqueness.
For the first time in Italy, Independent Theater Hungary will present the Italian premiere of its new theatrical creations at the Roman auditorium on Via di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme. On October 5, they will showcase the second part of the trilogy titled “Rotting Carcasses”, followed the next day by “The Builders of the Country”, a play that tells the story of social changes in socialist and democratic Hungary through intergenerational dynamics.
Also, on October 5 at 10:00 PM, the festival will host Moni Ovadia and his orchestra Taraf de Metropolitana Musica Nomade in a concert that will take the audience from the virtuosity of swing improvisation to the poignant notes of Romani music.
For the first time in Rome, the young Romanian Giuvlipen artistic collective will present a hip-hop concert on October 7 at Scomodo, and the following day they will close the festival with their new production “Viral on TikTok”, an extraordinary journey of two teenage girls striving for success by posting their videos on the famous social network. The performance tackles topics such as sexist ideals of beauty, the pressure of virginity and marriage, and the influence of religion in suppressing women’s rights.
Rampa Prenestina Theater Company, founded in 2022 and composed of professionals and young apprentices, partly from the Romani community in eastern Rome, will open the festival on October 4 with its debut performance “Waiting for Bo”. Loosely inspired by Samuel Beckett’s masterpiece, the show joyfully and freely tells the lives and emotions of two boys born and raised in the Romani camp of Via Gordiani in Rome. They will also present “ROMNIA” on October 7 at 8:30 PM, an innovative piece focused on the self-determination of Romani women within society and the community. The play tells the story of three generations of Romani and non-Romani women, reflecting on the evolution of traditions and female roles toward the future.
Rasid Nikolic will present “Gipsy Marionettist” on October 6, and “Rom vs. Everybody”, a show blending stand-up comedy and anthropological lecture, with a touch of extravagance and fierce irony to dismantle the stereotypes and ignorance surrounding Romani culture. Ivana Nikolic, an artist and human rights activist, will present “Ethnic Coming Out: Proud to be Romani and Sinti” on October 7—a show addressing the marginalization of Romani and Sinti people in Italy’s political and social life.
From October 2 to 6, Claudio De Maglio, actor, dancer, and teacher at the Nico Pepe Academy in Udine, will conduct an intensive workshop on the Masks of Commedia dell’Arte.
On October 5 at 6:00 PM, the roundtable “Voices on the Margins” will delve into Romani culture, explaining the project’s journey and spirit. The discussion will feature professors and researchers from Roma3 and La Sapienza universities, including Claudio De Maglio, Chiara Candidi, a researcher on Romani culture and women’s roles, and representatives from Spin Time, the venue hosting the festival, such as Paolo Perrini and Nino Racco.
The festival is organized in collaboration with the Spin Time Labs Culture Table and Scomodo, two alternative cultural organizations highly active in Rome’s social and cultural landscape, promoting mutual aid and active citizenship in the city’s underground scene.
ROMA HEROES International Romani Theatre Festival
from October 2 to 8, 2023
at the Auditorium of SpinTime and the Scomodo spaces
Via Santa Croce in Gerusalemme 55 / Rome
For more information: www.rampaprenestina.it/roma-heroes-festival/
Reserve your spot: romaheroesaroma@gmail.com
Organized by Rampa Prenestina in collaboration with Spin Time Labs Culture Table and Scomodo
Artistic Direction by Sebastiano Spinella
Co-financed by the European Union.