La Macchina dei Sogni
UN SOGNO LUNGO 50 ANNI
Palermo 28 July – 20 August, 2023
40th edition
Teatro and Laboratorio dei Pupi “Figli d’Arte Cuticchio” – View on map
“La Macchina dei Sogni” its 40th edition. Year after year, projects, goals, desires, artists, and crews have been recurrent but never repetitive. Forty editions that have never ceased to amaze both young and old, Italians and foreigners, scholars and students, years lived with the same passion, during which we have seen the puppet theater emancipate itself from certain clichés that had reduced it to folklore or, at best, to children’s theater.
The first edition was born almost by accident in 1984: it was intended as a tribute to the 50 years of activity of Giacomo Cuticchio (1917 – 1985), a sign of gratitude from the children towards their father-master. Mimmo reconstructed the artistic path of his father, around which he, along with his siblings, created a series of shows presented as a “family album”.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Teatrino di Via Bara all’Olivella. This journey, which began on July 28, 1973, is also reconstructed within The Dream Machine. The festival, originally created to summarize the Opera dei Pupi, revisits this form of theater through some shows scheduled in the Teatrino di Via Bara, leveraging half a century of craftsmanship, valuing and giving space to the tradition that Mimmo Cuticchio has long projected into a global dimension, through initiatives capable of rooting memory in the contemporary while preserving the narrative structure’s loyalty of the Opra, thus honoring its family tradition.
Fifty years is a long time, a life dedicated to art, lived with perseverance and great faith; years in which Mimmo Cuticchio has given voice and body to an ancient, oral, and popular repertoire, challenging the historical process of a tradition increasingly exposed to the impacts of new technologies.
The festival, as usual, engages the opera dei pupi with figure theater, juxtaposing our classic shows and new repertoire with other equally established traditions in the country, and offers three workshops – two for children and one for adults – inspired by the stories of the Lover and the Furious, blending verbal narration and visual storytelling.
Over the five decades of activity, numerous productions born in the little theater and taken around the world have been plentiful; a theaterography of the most important shows can be found in the publication that documents the 50 years of activity, while some performances will be offered in video projection at the festival, along with the backstage of some works.
In 2001, UNESCO declared the ‘Opera dei pupi’ an “oral and intangible heritage of humanity” and recommended that those responsible for cultural protection preserve its existence, conservation, and enhancement so that it may be passed on to future generations.
The promotion of this tangible and intangible heritage is often a difficult commitment to sustain and guarantee. We do our part by combining the shows with guided tours of the tangible heritage of the puppets, backdrops, cylindrical stages, and stage machines, kept within the exhibition hall that adds to that of the theater. These guided tours connect memory and identity, presenting the Opera to the present generation and to future ones, contributing, as Italo Calvino would say, to give “unity and a sense of cohesion, homogeneity, to the dispersion of things”.
Poster / Brochure (pdf – only in Italian)
Catalog / Program (pdf – only in Italian)
Visit the FaceBook page dedicated to La Macchina dei Sogni 2023
CALENDAR
Information
Shows – full-price ticket 10 € | reduced price 5€
Workshops and movies – free entry
PUPPET SHOWS
Via Bara All’Olivella 95
Arrivo di angelica a Parigi
Angelica’s arrival in Paris
Friday, July 28, Saturday, July 29, Sunday, July 30 – 6:30 p.m.
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
I Reali di Francia
The Royals of France
Saturday, August 5 and Sunday, August 6 – 6:30 p.m.
Cunto (storytelling) by and with Mimmo Cuticchio
Iliade o sia il riscatto di Priamo
Iliad or both the redemption of Priam
Saturday, August 12 and Sunday, August 13 – 6:30 p.m.
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
La fuga di Enea
The Escape of Aeneas
Saturday, August 19 and Sunday, August 20 – 6:30 p.m.
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
FIGURE THEATER SHOWS
Via Bara All’Olivella 48
Da Hermes Kranaios a Sant’Antonio Abate
From Hermes Kranaios to St. Anthony Abbot
JULY – Saturday 29, 5 p.m. – Sunday 30, 11 a.m.
Casa delle guaratelle / Bruno Leone
Pulcinella
AUGUST – Saturday 5, 5 p.m. – Sunday 6, 11 a.m.
Granteatrino Company
La vendetta della strega Morgana
The revenge of the witch Morgana
Saturday, August 12, 5 p.m.
I burattini di Mattia company
Fagiolino Pescatore
Bean Fisherman
Sunday, August 13, 11 a.m.
I burattini di Mattia company
Pane e scena
Bread and scene
AUGUST – Saturday 19, 5 p.m. – Sunday 20, 11 a.m.
La voce delle cose company
GUIDED TOURS
Via Bara All’Olivella 48
Dalla piccola alla grande scena
From small to big stage
August 3, 10 and 17 – 11 a.m.
STORYTELLING AND WORKSHOPS
Via Bara All’Olivella 48
L’ippogrifo e le avventure del Mago Atlante
The Hippogriff and the Adventures of the Wizard Atlas
Wednesday, August 9, 5:30 p.m.
Narrated by Michele Neri
afterwards
Ippogrifi e cadaveri squisiti
Hippogriffs and exquisite corpses
Creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
Il viaggio sulla luna del paladino Astolfo d’Inghilterra
The journey to the moon of the paladin Astolfo of England
Thursday, August 10, 5:30 p.m.
Narrated by Michele Neri
afterwards
Ufficio oggetti smarriti
Lost and Found Office
Creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
AAA senno cercasi
Friday, August 11, 11 a.m.
Creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
SCREENING OF PERFORMANCES AND DOCUMENTARIES
Via Bara All’Olivella 48
Puppet of Palermo
Thursday, August 10, 5 p.m.
Documentary
to follow, 6 p.m.
Visita guidata all’Opera dei Pupi
Guided tour of the Puppet Opera
Footage of the show
L’infanzia di Orlando
Orlando’s childhood
Friday, August 11, 5 p.m.
Footage of the show
to follow, 6 p.m.
Era una volta
Once upon a time
Documentary
Manon Tutui
Thursday, August 17, 5 p.m.
Documentary
to follow, 6 p.m.
Medusa
Footage of the show
La terribile e spaventosa storia del Principe
Gesualdo e della bella Maria
The terrible and frightening story of Prince
Gesualdo and the beautiful Maria
Thursday, August 17, 5 p.m.
Documentary
to follow, 6 p.m.
Sulle vie dell’inferno
On the ways of hell
Footage of the show
SHOWS
July | Friday 28, Saturday 29, Sunday 30, 6:30 p.m.
Arrivo di Angelica a Parigi
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
“But at the end of the beautiful hall, four very large and fierce giants entered, and among them a maiden, who was followed by a single knight.
She seemed like the morning star, a garden lily, and a rose from the gardens: in short, to tell the truth about her, such beauty had never been seen before.”
Matteo Maria Boiardo, Orlando innamorato I, I, 21
Arrivo di Angelica a Parigi is the show that Mimmo Cuticchio staged for the opening of the small theater on July 28, 1973. The echo of the experience he had with his father at the Italian Embassy in Paris was still very much alive. In that beautiful hall, Cavaliere Giacomo Cuticchio had performed with his son—who at that time was a first-grade assistant—the tales of Orlando, Rinaldo, and Angelica. The episode in question speaks of beauty and love, making it perfect for the opening of the theater and a good omen for the future home of the puppets.
Fifty years later, Mimmo is bringing it back on the upcoming July 28, but this time his son Giacomo, who carries his grandfather’s name and continues his craft as a puppeteer, is by his side.
Together, they will perform one of the most beautiful episodes from the first chapter of Matteo Maria Boiardo’s “Orlando Innamorato” following the ancient script, to underline the indissoluble bond with the repertoire, the narrative structure, the forms, the meanings, and the unchanged techniques. Considering that that performance transitioned the Opera dei Pupi into the third millennium, who knows if this time too it might mark the beginning of a new path for at least another 50 years.
August | Saturday 5 and Sunday 6, 6:30 p.m.
Reali di Francia
Cunto (storytelling) by and with Mimmo Cuticchio
Sitting on a bench in the public gardens, surrounded by a crowd of people, the storyteller, using only his voice and the aid of a sword, narrated the stories of the kings of France and their paladins. Today, the art of storytelling still lives on in other forms. Regardless of the medium, the primal need for storytelling has a future, perhaps even through new means of communication and new languages. Humans may invent everything possible, but they will continue to carry their past within them, a lived experience that cannot be ignored and will find a way to manifest itself. It has been 40 years since the debut of “La spada di Celano”, an evening that, ten years after the death of his master Peppino Celano, Mimmo brought to Italian theaters, combining body and speech, emotion and imagination. The 50th anniversary of Celano’s death deserves a tribute, and thus Cuticchio is reviving the art of storytelling with the same commitment as always, playing with the keyboards of tragedy, venturing into the universe of metaphors, plunging into the relevance of the present, and retrieving the traces of timeless stories.
August | Saturday 12 and Sunday 13, 6:30 p.m.
Iliade o sia il riscatto di Priamo
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
The Iliade o sia il riscatto di Priamo is the first performance outside the classic repertoire of the paladins of France. With this work, Mimmo began his study of the great Homeric poem, constructed new puppets based on the figures of the Greeks and Trojans—drawing inspiration from the artifacts exhibited at the A. Salinas Regional Archaeological Museum—and combined epic narrative and chivalric poem on stage.
The Homeric text serves as a pretext to reflect on the challenges of our present and to reconsider the theme of violence and war. The central theme of the Iliad is power. The power wielded by men as a tool of dominance, the power that bends men, the power before which men shrink back, and the power endured by women due to the physical and psychological violence of men, which, unfortunately, daily reports document all too often.
August | Saturday 19 and Sunday 20, 6:30 p.m.
La fuga di Enea
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
La fuga di Enea is one of the latest productions aimed at young audiences. It is centered on Virgil’s “Aeneid”, which, despite being over two thousand years old, is filled with references to contemporary issues. In this performance, the myth of Aeneas is not a tale of the past; rather, the Virgilian refugee reemerges as a symbol of other and no less dramatic exiles. His figure as a refugee, a defeated man in search of a new homeland, serves to express the condition of today’s migrants. The content of the show captures all the nuances of the human spirit: courage, boldness, the spirit of sacrifice, and it highlights the theme of unions and mixing, which are at the heart of the very founding of Rome.
July | Friday 28, Saturday 29, Sunday 30, 6:30 p.m.
Arrivo di Angelica a Parigi
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
“But at the end of the beautiful hall, four very large and fierce giants entered, and among them a maiden, who was followed by a single knight.
She seemed like the morning star, a garden lily, and a rose from the gardens: in short, to tell the truth about her, such beauty had never been seen before.”
Matteo Maria Boiardo, Orlando innamorato I, I, 21
Arrivo di Angelica a Parigi is the show that Mimmo Cuticchio staged for the opening of the small theater on July 28, 1973. The echo of the experience he had with his father at the Italian Embassy in Paris was still very much alive. In that beautiful hall, Cavaliere Giacomo Cuticchio had performed with his son—who at that time was a first-grade assistant—the tales of Orlando, Rinaldo, and Angelica. The episode in question speaks of beauty and love, making it perfect for the opening of the theater and a good omen for the future home of the puppets.
Fifty years later, Mimmo is bringing it back on the upcoming July 28, but this time his son Giacomo, who carries his grandfather’s name and continues his craft as a puppeteer, is by his side.
Together, they will perform one of the most beautiful episodes from the first chapter of Matteo Maria Boiardo’s “Orlando Innamorato” following the ancient script, to underline the indissoluble bond with the repertoire, the narrative structure, the forms, the meanings, and the unchanged techniques. Considering that that performance transitioned the Opera dei Pupi into the third millennium, who knows if this time too it might mark the beginning of a new path for at least another 50 years.
August | Saturday 5 and Sunday 6, 6:30 p.m.
Reali di Francia
Cunto (storytelling) by and with Mimmo Cuticchio
Sitting on a bench in the public gardens, surrounded by a crowd of people, the storyteller, using only his voice and the aid of a sword, narrated the stories of the kings of France and their paladins. Today, the art of storytelling still lives on in other forms. Regardless of the medium, the primal need for storytelling has a future, perhaps even through new means of communication and new languages. Humans may invent everything possible, but they will continue to carry their past within them, a lived experience that cannot be ignored and will find a way to manifest itself. It has been 40 years since the debut of “La spada di Celano”, an evening that, ten years after the death of his master Peppino Celano, Mimmo brought to Italian theaters, combining body and speech, emotion and imagination. The 50th anniversary of Celano’s death deserves a tribute, and thus Cuticchio is reviving the art of storytelling with the same commitment as always, playing with the keyboards of tragedy, venturing into the universe of metaphors, plunging into the relevance of the present, and retrieving the traces of timeless stories.
August | Saturday 12 and Sunday 13, 6:30 p.m.
Iliade o sia il riscatto di Priamo
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
The Iliade o sia il riscatto di Priamo is the first performance outside the classic repertoire of the paladins of France. With this work, Mimmo began his study of the great Homeric poem, constructed new puppets based on the figures of the Greeks and Trojans—drawing inspiration from the artifacts exhibited at the A. Salinas Regional Archaeological Museum—and combined epic narrative and chivalric poem on stage.
The Homeric text serves as a pretext to reflect on the challenges of our present and to reconsider the theme of violence and war. The central theme of the Iliad is power. The power wielded by men as a tool of dominance, the power that bends men, the power before which men shrink back, and the power endured by women due to the physical and psychological violence of men, which, unfortunately, daily reports document all too often.
August | Saturday 19 and Sunday 20, 6:30 p.m.
La fuga di Enea
Figli d’Arte Cuticchio company
La fuga di Enea is one of the latest productions aimed at young audiences. It is centered on Virgil’s “Aeneid”, which, despite being over two thousand years old, is filled with references to contemporary issues. In this performance, the myth of Aeneas is not a tale of the past; rather, the Virgilian refugee reemerges as a symbol of other and no less dramatic exiles. His figure as a refugee, a defeated man in search of a new homeland, serves to express the condition of today’s migrants. The content of the show captures all the nuances of the human spirit: courage, boldness, the spirit of sacrifice, and it highlights the theme of unions and mixing, which are at the heart of the very founding of Rome.
July | Saturday 29, 5 p.m. and Sunday 30, 11 a.m.
Casa Guarattelle | Napoli
Da Hermes Kranaios a Sant’Antonio Abate
Pulcinellesco journey by and with Bruno Leone
In Crete, near Patsos, there is a small cave that was sacred to Hermes in the Mycenaean era, then to Pan in Roman times, and to Saint Anthony the Great in the early Middle Ages. It is likely that the Achaeans also passed through here before facing the terrible war against Troy. Today, the cave is still a pilgrimage destination and is visited by devotees, artists, and animals. Inside, among the Mycenaean-era votive offerings, a small Pulcinella was also found (now on display in the museum in Rethymno). In Leone’s performance, Pulcinella dons the guise of Hermes to narrate the history of this magical place and why Hermes-Saint Anthony is still the protector of street artists, who feel closer to animals and plants than to humans, who no longer respect the planet they live on. Hermes, protector of thieves, Pan, lover of nature, and Saint Anthony, who stole fire from the devil, have always protected nature and its cycles. Their story, told through puppetry, teaches us respect for our Mother Earth.
August | Saturday 5, 5 p.m. and Sunday 6, 11 a.m.
Granteatrino | Bari
Pulcinella
The star of the show is Pulcinella, the beloved character who manages to engage both adults and children in a direct and creative interaction between the storyteller and the audience. The world’s most famous and ravenous mask deals with his eternal adversaries: along the way, he encounters a dog, then a bully, then a judge and a jail, a Capuchin monk, and an unlucky executioner… and so on, amid harem fineries and warlike fantasies of Paladins and Moors, crossing graveyards and asylums, enchanted woods, cliffs, precipices, mysterious islands, and curious prisons. In the end, with the Devil himself, Pulcinella will play his most special adventure.
The show is driven by compelling music that adds a touch of captivating modernity. The staging is based on the rediscovery of the puppet theater as a magic box: the alternation of scenes and lights, supported by music, in the traditional rhythm of a puppet show, lends the whole a great and original beauty.
August | Saturday 12, 5 p.m.
I burattini di Mattia Zecchi | Bologna
La vendetta della strega Morgana
by Mattia Zecchi
His Majesty King Francesco has announced a grand feast for the wedding of his son, Prince Ottavio, with Princess Bianca of the kingdom of Terrafelice. A large reception has been organized at the court under the supervision of Doctor Balanzone.
During the celebration, the Witch Morgana appears at court, having not been invited to the important event, and demands to speak with the King about her exclusion. The sovereign dismisses the witch, explaining that she is not welcome at court due to her wickedness. This action ignites the witch’s anger, and in revenge, she kidnaps the prince. To save Ottavio, the help of our hero Fagiolino is needed, who, armed with his stick, sets off in search of the witch. Will Fagiolino manage to free the prince? This show, presented at the award ceremony of the “Benedetto Ravasio” National Award in Bonate Sotto (BG) in 2010, is the winner of the “Le Figure del Futuro 2012” National Award in Perugia.
Agosto | domenica 13, ore 11.00
I burattini di Mattia Zecchi | Bologna
Fagiolino il pescatore
from an idea by Otello Sarzi
text by Romano Daniell, readaptation by Mattia Zecchi
A huge mystery surrounds the kingdom of Bellomare. For months, fishermen have been returning empty-handed from fishing, and King Stoccafisso I, a lover of fish, is annoyed at not being able to satisfy his cravings. Thus, he promises a reward of 100 gold coins to anyone who brings him fish. Fagiolino, a poor fisherman, is now down on his luck, and his landlord is determined to evict him. Just when all seems lost, the intervention of the Wizard Marino solves the situation. The witch Mucillalga has cast a powerful spell that put all the fish to sleep at the bottom of the sea. This spell can only be broken if someone throws one of the lice found in her hair into the sea. Driven by desperation, Fagiolino sets off in search of the witch to break the spell and bring a fine fish to the king, thus obtaining the promised reward. Everything seems simple, but Fagiolino will discover, to his detriment, that greed for money reigns in the royal palace; but once again, he will manage to resolve the situation.
August | Sat 19 | 5 p.m. and Sun 20 | 11 a.m.
La voce delle cose | Bergamo
Pane e scena
by and with Luì Angelini and Paola Serafini
“Panem et circenses”, thus the Latin satirical author Juvenal defined the aspirations of the Roman people: bread and entertainment. Everyone knows that food is essential. Everyone, except boring people, knows that entertainment is essential too. Thus, we have combined the two through a theater that activates everyday objects, created for different purposes. In the scenic space, instead of actors or puppets, a new form of theatrical communication is realized.
The materials of the performance are various types of bread and different qualities of fruit. The stories are a sequence of short pieces ranging from fairy tales to classic theater and epic stories, from fantastic tales to the narration of historical events. In a simple scenic structure, a tale unfolds continuously stuffed with irony.
A show for everyone, starting from age 6, with plenty of laughs guaranteed and some food for thought.
July | Saturday 29, 5 p.m. and Sunday 30, 11 a.m.
Casa Guarattelle | Napoli
Da Hermes Kranaios a Sant’Antonio Abate
Pulcinellesco journey by and with Bruno Leone
In Crete, near Patsos, there is a small cave that was sacred to Hermes in the Mycenaean era, then to Pan in Roman times, and to Saint Anthony the Great in the early Middle Ages. It is likely that the Achaeans also passed through here before facing the terrible war against Troy. Today, the cave is still a pilgrimage destination and is visited by devotees, artists, and animals. Inside, among the Mycenaean-era votive offerings, a small Pulcinella was also found (now on display in the museum in Rethymno). In Leone’s performance, Pulcinella dons the guise of Hermes to narrate the history of this magical place and why Hermes-Saint Anthony is still the protector of street artists, who feel closer to animals and plants than to humans, who no longer respect the planet they live on. Hermes, protector of thieves, Pan, lover of nature, and Saint Anthony, who stole fire from the devil, have always protected nature and its cycles. Their story, told through puppetry, teaches us respect for our Mother Earth.
August | Saturday 5, 5 p.m. and Sunday 6, 11 a.m.
Granteatrino | Bari
Pulcinella
The star of the show is Pulcinella, the beloved character who manages to engage both adults and children in a direct and creative interaction between the storyteller and the audience. The world’s most famous and ravenous mask deals with his eternal adversaries: along the way, he encounters a dog, then a bully, then a judge and a jail, a Capuchin monk, and an unlucky executioner… and so on, amid harem fineries and warlike fantasies of Paladins and Moors, crossing graveyards and asylums, enchanted woods, cliffs, precipices, mysterious islands, and curious prisons. In the end, with the Devil himself, Pulcinella will play his most special adventure.
The show is driven by compelling music that adds a touch of captivating modernity. The staging is based on the rediscovery of the puppet theater as a magic box: the alternation of scenes and lights, supported by music, in the traditional rhythm of a puppet show, lends the whole a great and original beauty.
August | Saturday 12, 5 p.m.
I burattini di Mattia Zecchi | Bologna
La vendetta della strega Morgana
by Mattia Zecchi
His Majesty King Francesco has announced a grand feast for the wedding of his son, Prince Ottavio, with Princess Bianca of the kingdom of Terrafelice. A large reception has been organized at the court under the supervision of Doctor Balanzone.
During the celebration, the Witch Morgana appears at court, having not been invited to the important event, and demands to speak with the King about her exclusion. The sovereign dismisses the witch, explaining that she is not welcome at court due to her wickedness. This action ignites the witch’s anger, and in revenge, she kidnaps the prince. To save Ottavio, the help of our hero Fagiolino is needed, who, armed with his stick, sets off in search of the witch. Will Fagiolino manage to free the prince? This show, presented at the award ceremony of the “Benedetto Ravasio” National Award in Bonate Sotto (BG) in 2010, is the winner of the “Le Figure del Futuro 2012” National Award in Perugia.
Agosto | domenica 13, ore 11.00
I burattini di Mattia Zecchi | Bologna
Fagiolino il pescatore
from an idea by Otello Sarzi
text by Romano Daniell, readaptation by Mattia Zecchi
A huge mystery surrounds the kingdom of Bellomare. For months, fishermen have been returning empty-handed from fishing, and King Stoccafisso I, a lover of fish, is annoyed at not being able to satisfy his cravings. Thus, he promises a reward of 100 gold coins to anyone who brings him fish. Fagiolino, a poor fisherman, is now down on his luck, and his landlord is determined to evict him. Just when all seems lost, the intervention of the Wizard Marino solves the situation. The witch Mucillalga has cast a powerful spell that put all the fish to sleep at the bottom of the sea. This spell can only be broken if someone throws one of the lice found in her hair into the sea. Driven by desperation, Fagiolino sets off in search of the witch to break the spell and bring a fine fish to the king, thus obtaining the promised reward. Everything seems simple, but Fagiolino will discover, to his detriment, that greed for money reigns in the royal palace; but once again, he will manage to resolve the situation.
August | Sat 19 | 5 p.m. and Sun 20 | 11 a.m.
La voce delle cose | Bergamo
Pane e scena
by and with Luì Angelini and Paola Serafini
“Panem et circenses”, thus the Latin satirical author Juvenal defined the aspirations of the Roman people: bread and entertainment. Everyone knows that food is essential. Everyone, except boring people, knows that entertainment is essential too. Thus, we have combined the two through a theater that activates everyday objects, created for different purposes. In the scenic space, instead of actors or puppets, a new form of theatrical communication is realized.
The materials of the performance are various types of bread and different qualities of fruit. The stories are a sequence of short pieces ranging from fairy tales to classic theater and epic stories, from fantastic tales to the narration of historical events. In a simple scenic structure, a tale unfolds continuously stuffed with irony.
A show for everyone, starting from age 6, with plenty of laughs guaranteed and some food for thought.
STORYTELLING | WORKSHOPS
SCREENINGS | DOCUMENTARIES
TELLING IN WORDS AND PICTURES
Michele Neri and Ilaria Demonti
Who said that stories are told only with words? Inspired by the stories of the paladins of France, with these two activity proposals for children, we will combine verbal narration with visual storytelling through the stories told by Michele Neri and the creative workshops led by Ilaria Demonti.
August | Wednesday, August 9, 5:30 p.m.
First workshop for children ages 6 to 10 years old
L’Ippogrifo e le avventure del Mago Atlante
The Hippogriff and the Adventures of the Wizard Atlas
storytelling Michele Neri
The handsome young Ruggiero is the favored son of a very powerful African magician. But, like all sorcerers, he too knows the fate of his protégé. What will he invent to keep him away from the love of the beautiful Bradamante, a brave and fearless warrior?
Ippogrifi e cadaveri squisiti
Hippogriffs and exquisite corpses
creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
Inspired by Ludovico Ariosto, who invented an imaginary animal, half horse and half griffin, participants will play at creating never-before-seen animals. Each participant will draw a piece of their animal on a sheet, which will then be covered and passed to someone else, who in turn must continue the drawing without knowing what the previous one looks like. Just like in the surrealists’ collective game of “exquisite corpses,” the final result will be unexpected and hilarious!
August | Thursday 10, 5:30 p.m.
Second workshop for children ages 6 to 10 years old
Il viaggio sulla luna del Paladino Astolfo d’Inghilterra
Paladin Astolfo of England’s journey to the moon
storytelling Michele Neri
Brave and loyal friend of the unfortunate paladin Orlando, who went mad from love, riding on a winged steed, Prince Astolfo will arrive on the moon, where he is awaited…
Ufficio oggetti smarriti
Lost and Found Office
creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
During his journey to the moon, Astolfo discovers that it is there where things lost on Earth end up: crowns, unanswered prayers, wasted time, unrealized projects…
During this workshop, we will make an inventory of the things we have lost: each participant will create their own version of our satellite, using the technique of scratching on wax crayons.
August | Friday 11, 11 a.m.
Third workshop for adults
AAA senno cercasi
creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
Have you ever lost your mind? Orlando’s ended up in a flask on the moon. In this workshop, we will try to lose it (and find it again) on a sheet of paper. After drawing everything that’s on our mind—memories, dreams, projects, obsessions, thoughts—we will make it disappear from the paper using cyanotype, a photographic printing technique that works very simply: a few rays of sunlight and some water are enough to see the image transform and magically take on color.
TELLING IN WORDS AND PICTURES
Michele Neri and Ilaria Demonti
Who said that stories are told only with words? Inspired by the stories of the paladins of France, with these two activity proposals for children, we will combine verbal narration with visual storytelling through the stories told by Michele Neri and the creative workshops led by Ilaria Demonti.
August | Wednesday, August 9, 5:30 p.m.
First workshop for children ages 6 to 10 years old
L’Ippogrifo e le avventure del Mago Atlante
The Hippogriff and the Adventures of the Wizard Atlas
storytelling Michele Neri
The handsome young Ruggiero is the favored son of a very powerful African magician. But, like all sorcerers, he too knows the fate of his protégé. What will he invent to keep him away from the love of the beautiful Bradamante, a brave and fearless warrior?
Ippogrifi e cadaveri squisiti
Hippogriffs and exquisite corpses
creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
Inspired by Ludovico Ariosto, who invented an imaginary animal, half horse and half griffin, participants will play at creating never-before-seen animals. Each participant will draw a piece of their animal on a sheet, which will then be covered and passed to someone else, who in turn must continue the drawing without knowing what the previous one looks like. Just like in the surrealists’ collective game of “exquisite corpses,” the final result will be unexpected and hilarious!
August | Thursday 10, 5:30 p.m.
Second workshop for children ages 6 to 10 years old
Il viaggio sulla luna del Paladino Astolfo d’Inghilterra
Paladin Astolfo of England’s journey to the moon
storytelling Michele Neri
Brave and loyal friend of the unfortunate paladin Orlando, who went mad from love, riding on a winged steed, Prince Astolfo will arrive on the moon, where he is awaited…
Ufficio oggetti smarriti
Lost and Found Office
creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
During his journey to the moon, Astolfo discovers that it is there where things lost on Earth end up: crowns, unanswered prayers, wasted time, unrealized projects…
During this workshop, we will make an inventory of the things we have lost: each participant will create their own version of our satellite, using the technique of scratching on wax crayons.
August | Friday 11, 11 a.m.
Third workshop for adults
AAA senno cercasi
creative workshop by Ilaria Demonti
Have you ever lost your mind? Orlando’s ended up in a flask on the moon. In this workshop, we will try to lose it (and find it again) on a sheet of paper. After drawing everything that’s on our mind—memories, dreams, projects, obsessions, thoughts—we will make it disappear from the paper using cyanotype, a photographic printing technique that works very simply: a few rays of sunlight and some water are enough to see the image transform and magically take on color.
August | Thursday 10, 5 p.m.
Puppets of Palermo
documentary – duration: 15 minutes
by Michael Winship and Max Tyler
A work from 1984 that only the mastery of the cinema professionals who made it for the National Geographic Society could make it extremely relevant today. In just a few minutes, we witness the “epic” tale of the Cuticchio family members, the birth of an armed puppet, the staging of a performance, and the audience’s participation in the small theater on Via Bara all’Olivella, still immersed in the chaotic traffic of cars.
August | Thursday 10, 6 p.m.
Visita guidata all’Opera dei Pupi
footage of the show – duration: 60 minutes
by Mimmo Cuticchio and Salvo Licata
This is a tribute to the puppet theater but at the same time a testimony to its crisis, confirming that on the threshold of the new millennium it was necessary to guide it towards new shores. A guided tour of the puppet opera becomes the desperate cry of a puppeteer who, after the 1943 bombing of Palermo by the Americans, must acknowledge the end of an era but at the same time wants to reaffirm his existence and his right to renew himself.
August | Friday 11, 5 p.m.
L’infanzia di Orlando
footage of the show – duration: 60 minutes
by Mimmo Cuticchio
Following in the path of “Guided Tour of the Puppet Opera,” this work further explores the possibility of finding a balance between tradition and innovation. The action is transferred from the small proscenium of the opera to the expanse of the theatrical stage. The show originates from a domestic game between father and son. The unique aspect is that the father is a master puppeteer and that the child has been breathing this fabulous air since birth. The father is Mimmo Cuticchio, the son is Giacomo, seven years old, the same age as the protagonist.
August | Friday 11, 6 p.m.
Era una volta
documentary – duration: 20 minutes
by Daniele Ciprì and Mimmo Cuticchio
As is known, the Opera dei Pupi, due to the themes and the dramatic nature of the stories told, is a theatrical genre not well suited for children; however, attention and commitment to the youngest have always been a priority for our company. “Era una volta” is not only the story of a theatrical performance but also the testimony of an experience with an epic and at the same time fairy-tale flavor, in tune with the themes of the show: childhood, dreams, and the need for stories to hear and tell. The filming and editing are by Daniele Ciprì, who created a sort of road-movie through the landscapes of memory and fantasy. Thus, the images of Master Cuticchio and his collaborators, busy constructing the puppet theater, the conversations between Cuticchio and the Iraqi actor Yousef Latif Jaralla, and the scenes of the show alternate like in a flashback whose dreamlike dimension is accentuated by the switch to black and white.
August | Thursday, 17, 5 p.m.
Manon Tutui
documentary – duration: 45 minutes
by Francesca Taormina, Mario Silvestri and Giovanni Ferreri
It is the meeting of the opera dei pupi, opera lirica, and cunto. It is the union of the popular soul of melodrama with that of puppet theater. It is the result of research that two workshops—the Cuticchio workshop and the Teatro Scuola di Palermo group—have produced with different objectives, and that in this work come together to bring opera theater closer to young people. “Manon Tutui” narrates the thoughts, trepidations, and dreams that Puccini wrote in his music but also those of Mimmo Cuticchio, who, through the evocative power of his cunto, starts from one of Palermo’s grandest stages, the Politeama Theater, and reaches the hearts of the audience.
August | Thursday, 17, 5 p.m.
Medusa
footage of the show – duration: 60 minuti
direction Mimmo Cuticchio
music Giacomo Cuticchio
The character Medusa has an inseparable connection with Sicily, a melting pot of countless civilizations, a hospitable land but at the same time perpetually trampled upon like the beautiful maiden Medusa, destined by Fate to be cursed by a goddess and immortalized in her last breath: a muffled scream that calls for the love of men.
On stage, the performers are like priests in service of the story, and every action is carried out as a ritual form. The sung text and the music travel parallel but there is nothing didactic about it. Everything moves poetically and as in dreams. Medusa is not the monster we have been led to know; she is a beautiful maiden who dreams of love. But fate has decreed otherwise.
The ending is well known, unfortunately, the destiny of the story cannot be changed.
August | Friday, 18, 5 p.m.
La terribile e spaventosa storia del Principe
Gesualdo e della bella Maria
documentary – duration: 45 minutes
Sky Classica in collaboration CIDIM
For a program edited by Amerigo Daveri and Maria Mauti
An episode of uxoricidio from times past yet so relevant today, an event that resonated so strongly as to inspire the imagination of historians, poets, and playwrights over the centuries. A prince and madrigalist among the most illustrious in late sixteenth-century Naples, Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa, marries a cousin of rare beauty by whom he is betrayed. The affair soon becomes public knowledge, and according to the norms of the time, the prince is forced to reclaim his honor. Mimmo Cuticchio entrusts this incredible story to the puppets to reveal its heroic, pathetic, and farcical aspects, and to the cunto to elevate it with its stylization; the music is by composer Salvatore Sciarrino, who has reworked Gesualdo’s madrigals.
August | Friday, 18, 6 p.m.
Sulle vie dell’inferno
footage of the show – duration: 50 minutes
scenic conception and direction Mimmo Cuticchio
director of photography Daniele Ciprì
original music Giacomo Cuticchio
This is a journey parallel to Dante’s, which finds a surprising resonance with contemporary themes and images, despite characters and situations being faithful to those of the Poem, from which Mimmo Cuticchio has chosen to depict sixteen scenes. In this filmed document, Mimmo Cuticchio takes on the role of a lucid and detached narrator. Like Virgil, he guides us through a very unique adaptation of the Inferno, set in a Sicilian context, where the amazement and “lightness” of the puppets lend the Dantean narrative new nuances, making it current and at the same time universal, while the verses of the great Poet are entrusted to the actor Alfonso Veneroso.
CREDITS
La Macchina dei Sogni | 40th edition
Un sogno lungo 50 anni
Palermo July 28 August 2023
Art Director Mimmo Cuticchio
Working Group
Vittorio Caldovino
Giacomo Cuticchio
Elena Madia
Marcello D’Agostino
Tania Giordano
Giuseppe Graffeo
Stage photographer Alessandro D’Amico
Web designer and social media Valerio Bellone
Outfitting Tania Giordano
Graphic design Mela Dell’Erba
Printing Services Officine Grafiche soc. coop.
Press Office Giulio Giallombardo e Angela Mannino
Administrative counseling Maria D’Agostino e Dora Rubè
Organization Elisa Puleo
