Theater, Lucia Lavia ‘actress-man-god and also acrobat for the rite of’ Baccanti ‘in Syracuse

“Acting, here in Syracuse and now, after the forced closure due to the Covid pandemic, finally in front of the public but in this case being able to look him in the eye, sitting in the stone audience at sunset, gives a unique and special emotion “. This is what Lucia Lavia is keen to underline to AdnKronos, protagonist in the role of the god Dionysus in Euripides’ ‘Bacchantes’, in the very special and spectacular version signed by Carlus Padrissa for the Catalan company of the Fura dels Baus, which she sees at the Greek Theater of Syracuse on stage Ivan Graziano interpreting Penteo, Stefano Santospago for Cadmo, Antonello Fassari for Tiresia, Linda Gennari for Agave, with the sets and costumes of the laboratory of the Inda foundation, the national institute of ancient drama led by the superintendent Antonio Calbi. “Theatrical acting is always a relationship between actor and spectator, but in this space of the Greek theater in Syracuse everything happens in a more incisive way, because – explains Lucia Lavia – looking into the person’s eyes creates a different empathy, as if to bring the story goes on together with the audience instead of just proposing it to the audience. In indoor theaters, the actor brings the story to the viewer; here, instead, we bring the story together, me and the other actors together with all the spectators who are also co-protagonists of the staging: in Greek tragedies, many lines of the text are addressed directly to the audience seated in the theater, with the actors ‘eyes crossing the spectators’ eyes “. For Lucia Lavia,” here in Syracuse it is not staged only a ‘performance’ but a real ‘rite’ of which we actors are in some way the priests for this people. This is the most beautiful and most special thing that can happen to a theater artist “. As for the particularity of the version in some ways also ‘acrobatic’ proposed by the Fura dels Baus, “it requires a physical value for an extremely tiring show, an absolute rigor, as a competitive sports athlete, to face and win what is in effect a theatrical ‘competition’ “. In the role of Dionysus god and goddess, for a work that theologically could be defined as blasphemous. After all, Lucia Lavia adds,” my father Gabriele has always taught me that the profession of theater actor is of profound rigor: and if you betray the theater, the theater then betrays you “. In addition to this professional teaching, did Gabriele Lavia also ‘give’ some suggestions, some paternal recommendations, some ‘warnings’ to face the show? “No, nothing: also because a director can never recommend anything with respect to another direction – replies the daughter – And I have not anticipated anything, although I do not hide the fact that I am curious to know what he will think of it when he has seen the performance. “Returning to the Dionysus of these ‘Bacchantes’, who sees her interpreting a god as a woman,” we are in front of the group of Bacchae seen as ‘feminist’ women, who claim their rights; and Dionysus himself is god and goddess at the time same, as divinity has no sex “. In particular Dionysus, who towards the end of the show claims the female name of Dionisa, “is a multiform divinity in his eternal childhood, which is not determined in a predetermined form: he is man and woman, bull and snake and lion, playful and angry , vengeful and deceitful, envious and rancorous, jealous and wicked in his childhood. In a word, he is the most human god of all gods. ” In this sense, ‘Baccanti’ could be defined theologically as a blasphemous work … “Exactly – reiterates Lucia Lavia – a god who has no mercy is a blasphemous god for his own divinity”. (By Enzo Bonaiuto)