Count me in! Mirabilia Festival

On the evening of 30 August, among the audience at the show "The Queen’s Mirror" by La Ribalta/Antonio Viganò, organised by the Fondazione PdV at the Toselli Theatre, there will be some students from the Virginio Donadio Agricultural Institute in Cuneo. During the 2023/2024 academic year, these students participated in a theatre workshop offered by the school and coordinated by support teacher Elena Cometti, who organises an inclusive theatre workshop for students with disabilities within the school curriculum. La Ribalta company is primarily composed of actors and actresses with disabilities who perform theatre professionally. They do not seek special indulgence or particular attention from their audience. This theatre company approaches the world of theatre not with therapeutic, pedagogical, or social intentions, but to capture the mystery that belongs to the inexplicability of art, where therapy must stop at this threshold. Mirabilia believed it would be a wonderful opportunity for the Cuneo students of Virginio Donadio to watch the show at the Toselli Theatre for free on Saturday and, thanks to the great availability of their teacher and La Ribalta company, to meet the artists associated with the Akademie Kunst der Vielfalt/Accademia Arte della Diversità-Theater La Ribalta in Bolzano and their director Antonio Viganò the following morning.

Another beautiful encounter took place on Thursday, 29 August, between the circus schools attending the gathering and the young disabled participants of AmicoSport. The A.S.D. Amico Sport Association was founded in 1994 with the goal of promoting recreational and sporting activities for individuals with intellectual disabilities, regardless of age, ability, or type of disability. The primary goals have always been to improve the quality of life of these individuals, making them active participants in the world around them. All of this is achieved using sport as the main tool and, most importantly, creating opportunities for meetings, exchange, understanding, and collaboration among families facing similar challenges. The athletes of AmicoSport worked with TeatrAzione at Parco Monviso in circus disciplines in the morning, then gathered in the afternoon at Parco della Resistenza to see some of the techniques learned in the morning used in the performance "Ca’Mea" by the Aga Company. It was beautiful and moving to see all these young people working together, enjoying each other, and learning from each one!

Dance4ageing, an incredible experience

Is the over 65 people affected by Alzheimer an audience? Yes, they are, and to work with them is an emotional experience that has no parallel. Danc4Ageing, developed within the Departments of Humanities and Psychology of UniTo (University of Torino), is a wellness protocol with a therapeutic approach for individuals affected by Alzheimer's or cognitive decline. At the festival, an immersive installation was presented with projections of Renaissance artworks and a tactile experience. In this installation, artists Francesca Cola and Debora Giordi invited participants to resonate with the Renaissance paintings projected on screens through bodily movement and group interaction, using community dance practices specifically designed for people over 65. The project was coordinated by Professor Rita Maria Fabris, with support from Andrea Zardi, Maurizio Consolandi, Marika Caldaralo, Giulia Tonello, Stefano Martelli, and Lorenzo Perissinotto. For the staff of the festival, this is one of the most moving moments of the programme! The festival in collaboration with Dance4Ageing, engaged residents of the "Casa Famiglia" nursing home in Cuneo. On 1 September, Dance4Ageing also offered a workshop with a performance outcome titled "Andante: Bodily Dialogues between Visual Art and Dance."