«The theater is a place of culture, reflection, spirituality and above all freedom. What we are doing in this complicated time concretely reflects our moral, spiritual and ethical position: communicating with everyone, giving a voice to those who have none, valuing art and reflecting, through it, on the present. Without fences.”
Andrée Ruth Shammah she is the founder and director of Franco Parenti Theatre, a true cultural institution in Milan. He wanted a series of meetings on the figure of Jesus which begins on Sunday 24 November with the lectio by Enzo Bianchi (“Jesus and women”) and continues until 22 December with Corrado Augias, Daniele Novara and Massimo Recalcati. Two new cultural projects were presented on Wednesday together with the Lombardy Region: “The authors outside the door: geography and history of Lombardy landscapes” and the “Living Nativity Scene”.
Shammah, it is a time of great turmoil.
«I am very satisfied with what we are doing and what we are carrying forward with great sacrifices. We gave voice to Ashkan Khatibi, Iranian dissident, playwright, actor, musician and producer, who after the assassination of Mahsa Amini, stood out as one of the voices closest to the popular demands hostile to the Islamic Republic. After being arrested and violently interrogated by Iranian intelligence, he left his country, his family and his students. He arrived in Italy and continued his artistic life here. A moderate Islamic who courageously denounces the Iranian regime. Who like me by the Israeli author Roy Chen about the experience of five boys in a mental rehabilitation center has become a success with sold out every night and is on stage from October 1st until Christmas. We are preparing with Andrea Chiodi a show on Jacopone da Todi and the Living Nativity initiative which aims to relaunch and make known the meaning of crafts, craftsmanship as a response also to artificial intelligence which must be used and not demonised, but it is clear that craftsmanship saves and enhances man because it is a painstaking profession, involving patience and attention to detail. He’s on stage The Misanthrope by Moliere, a great classic made without updating it to say that it is “modern” because a great classic like this show is even more modern if you leave it as it is and know how to do it well.”
The theme of this year’s season is “What if we talked about love again”.
«It is the glue of everything, from shows to meetings to various initiatives, and it is a gift that we give to the city of Milan for the present and above all for the future when I will no longer be here».
In this historical moment, religion is also used to wage war, especially in the Middle East. She, a Jew, wanted a series of meetings to rediscover the figure of Jesus and his relevance. Why?
«I claim the Judeo-Christian roots of the West, very often forgotten, and the strength of the values they bring with them. As a Jewish child I attended a Catholic school where there was a crucifix and it was never a problem for me. Just as I hope it doesn’t offend anyone – but unfortunately this isn’t always the case – if I wear a Star of David around my neck or if a man wears a kippah. When there is respect for differences, we can coexist and form an alliance with everyone. In the past the Church accused the Jews of deicide, then thanks to Pope Wojtyla the accusation was dropped and this, for me, makes everything easier. However, through these initiatives I am not speaking with the Church but with all those who want, believers or not, to recognize that in these days we need an alliance between religions, cultures and ideas so as not to be overwhelmed by hatred and war. This year, then, there is a coincidence of dates that makes me think a lot.”
Which?
«Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of light, begins on December 25, Christmas Day. It’s impressive, an important sign at this time. I hope that through my initiative on Jesus, in which there will also be secular authors, my idea that Milan is a city that welcomes, opens, reasons, reflects and that the theatre, as I conceive it, must be a place of freedom , an oasis where you are not afraid to reflect on spirituality.”
A few days ago the manager of the Orfeo cinema refused to screen the documentary on Liliana Segre not because it was anti-Semitic, he said, but for fear of protests and of being damaged. Are you worried about this climate?
«There is a wave of anti-Semitism worldwide which is very dangerous. Not that it wasn’t there before, mind you, but today it is more accentuated and worrying. However, I don’t feel like minimizing this and other episodes, but I wouldn’t give them such great praise either. The sad thing is not so much the fear of this manager but that there could then be people who go to attack the cinema and smash the windows. I hope there is someone who says that these people who take to the streets for the Palestinians and the wounded population of Gaza but then, ultimately, they are with the Hamas terrorists and with the Iranian government, which is the worst that can be imagined in the history of dictatorships”.
What is it like as a Jew to do culture in Milan after October 7th?
«This date was a watershed, without a doubt. My suffering is that when the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women was celebrated, we talked about all the victims but not about the Israeli women who were raped, tortured, complete with videos to prove it, by Hamas. There are battles, and this one is, that are fought above and beyond everything. Unfortunately, when this does not happen, unnecessary harm is done to some victims. On Monday at Franco Parenti on the occasion of the Day there will be a very powerful text written by Nicoletta Vernia and recited by Marina Rocco which embraces all the women victims: the Ukrainian ones, the Afghan ones who can no longer study or do anything, the Israeli ones. All. I think that Milan can and must be a beacon from this point of view, an example.”
