Lessons of Florence

The other day my friend, Alessandro, called me with a question – “do you know anyone who specializes in making wooden toys or masks or such things?  I need them for an event I am planning and you know everyone.”  Now, regardless of the fact that I actually do know one or two people I can refer him to…. How did I get to the point where my Florentine friend who has lived here all his life calls me for advice with who’s who in Florence?

As a colleague said to me in a recent meeting – “Florence isn’t a small town, it’s a village.”  And this is true.  And like all villages, it has its characters – many of whom I’ve come to know and, frankly, am afraid I am becoming one of them. For some people here the work I do is important – worth supporting and encouraging.  Even being a part of.  However for others I seem to represent a threat to – I’m not sure what – their sense of their own identity …. Or maybe their ability to succeed alongside my own perceived “success” which – according to their behavior – this town is too small to contain. 

Take Irene (we will change her name out of respect – which I have for her even though I am clear she has none for me).  Irene has lived here many years, is married to an Italian and has two or three children.  I have actually only been in the presence of Irene about 4 times in the 2years and 7 months I have lived in Florence.  For me that’s about 3 times too many.  Here’s why:

There is an organization here called the Tuscan American Association.  I’m not sure exactly what they do because they’ve been here for ten years and seem quite limited in their accomplishments, but they exist which is an accomplishment in itself in Florence.  Every year they do a huge picnic for Independence Day.  One of the gentlemen who is a part of this organization invited us to come to a meeting with the idea of our participating in the event, he felt it was a grand opportunity to get the word out on our activities (they attract 3,000 – 5,000 people).  I thought it easiest and appropriate to offer the Creative Campus Story Hour project which is easy to create, involves visiting college students and children love it because it’s very interactive.  When we get to the meeting I am introduced to an older gentleman who says (in Italian of course…) “oh you are doing something for children, well we have someone overseeing that area” then he showed me a piece of paper with the name “Irene ____” written on it.  My entire body begins to freeze up.

This woman – for a reason I will never understand – is completely threatened by me.  From the first encounter (remember there have only been 4) when I announced at the “Network” meeting of expatriate women the formation of FITC and when asked said, “yes of course we’ll be doing things for children” she decided I was her competition.  She came up to me immediately and said “I have a camp for children.”  “That’s nice.” I replied.  Irene continued with “This is a small town, we have to work together.”  I, in my Florence ignorance stage (having been here only 6 months) said “Irene, we’re a theatre we are not in competition with you.  I have no desire to do a camp for children.”  Then a year later I heard she was speaking of me as if I was taking something from her so I called her to see how we could work together and sat with her at a coffee for more than an hour.  Nothing came of that meeting from her end and I let it go.

Then six months later there was the USA Street Fair where she was overseeing the children’s section.  The Consulate asked us to participate and offer something for children.  I (now knowing where I live) called Irene immediately to offer an idea for working together.  She balked at the idea entirely then told me she would get back to me.  She never did.  The day of the Street Fair she had a huge section set up for her activities, and FITC’s Story Hour was around the corner in an alley. 

Still she persists with “Bari is not open to working with us, this is a small town.”  I know this because Clelia (our Director of Public Relations) in her efforts to publicize our last production stopped by Irene’s camp thinking the parents would enjoy knowing about our show. That’s when Irene repeated this mantra.

All of this is to discuss the 4th encounter, which was shortly after the nice older Italian gentleman showed me the piece of paper with Irene’s name written on it.  She came in a few minutes later, saw me and tried to hide her entire body turning bright yellow.  Then, as we all sat down to discuss the event, she kept repeating the words “sono aperta” which means “I am open” while also talking about all the challenges of space and insurance (which apparently makes things less “aperta”) then she said a word I didn’t know.  And she kept repeating it in different sentences.  At that point, the wonderful gentleman who brought us to this meeting began to turn a sort of red color (the room was getting very colorful) and then began to speak to her in a very strong, almost angry tone.  I finally understood what “concorrente” means.  It means “competitor.”  He went on and on about how the space is huge and how dare she use the word “concorrente” in this circumstance when it’s an event for everyone.  “You are American” he said “you are the leaders in cooperative work, how can you take a position such as this?”  Irene responded simply by saying “oh you misunderstand me… sono aperta.”  Then my gentleman friend’s color slightly returned and the older man now seemed a little confused.  He started asking me in – what I felt was a gruff manner – what we were proposing.  And Irene joined him in this sort of approach which frankly pissed me off.  So after about five strong minutes of this, I folded the information into the envelope I brought and said – in Italian if you can believe it – “Irene, you say you are open, but you are not, you are closed.  You keep putting me in a position I am not interested in being in.  I am a theatre.  We are offering something gratis as a service to the community.  I am not your competition and I am tired of this coming from you.”  then I turned to the older gentleman and said “Clearly this is not going to work this time, I hope in the future FITC and The Tuscan American Association can work together to create something of benefit for Florence.’  And I was ready to leave when my friend stopped me, asked me to sit down and we found a way for all of us to make a “bella figura” (a beautiful figure) out of this “brutta situazione” (ugly situation).  Which we did.  Then, on the street, having left all of them to continue their meeting, I apologized to the nice gentleman and he apologized to me.

This is a small but significant part of living in Florence for me…. the jealousy of some expatriates – fellow Americans and all women – who have decided I am their enemy.

I have spent a lot of time trying to appease them.  I no longer choose to do it. 

How does that phrase go?  “This town ain’t big enuf for the two of us.”  For me that means Florence is not big enough for my dreams of success for FITC and their petty fear and jealousy.  They are welcome to it (although I guarantee their lives will suffer for it), and I don’t need to partake – which lets me breathe a heck of a lot easier!

Ciao Ragazzi!  Sempre pensare da voi.

Bari

Well Ragazzi…. FITC has done it again.  “Betrayal” opened to an almost full house, silence, laughter and multiple ovations.  It was an interesting journey coming to this point - - bringing in my friend and colleague from the states to direct it, casting another Florentine friend and colleague here to act in English for the first time (even though he is fluent – also in French, German and a bit of Japanese), finding a way to play the lead role, while producing and taking on new aspects of production that Aaron used to handle that I know nothing about – such as graphic arts!, and introducing another actor to the wonderful world of English language theatre who doesn’t actually speak a word of English – but who did wonderfully as the waiter with five lines of text and a great personality.

I often wonder if what I am doing here makes sense… all of it is new, every idea I have, every project… it all takes enormous effort to create and manifest.  But it’s also fascinating.  Such moments as the transition I had to guide my friend through who was directing the play to understand it was okay that, when we had a lunch break and Alessandro (our lead actor) ordered wine with his pasta, he wasn’t going to be sloshed at the next part of rehearsals, show me continually the challenges I face.  Both great and small they are real…. Integrating cultures, working within the bureaucracy of Florence, all of it is one wall after another toward the goal.  But Steven adjusted to the Italian need for a coffee break where you really took the time to have it, to the fact that Italians drink wine with lunch not to get high but to compliment the food, and that – yes as frustrating as it is – and it IS frustrating – a transition has to happen with our Italian colleagues between entering the door of rehearsal and starting rehearsal. 

I loved watching the process Alessandro went through in the rehearsal period.  When he started he approached the role from a very ‘Italian’ perspective.  He showed how he felt, he demonstrated and commented on everything.  But I always suspected that Alessandro has the capacity of being a truly great actor with the right guidance – great in the sense that he could access himself and express his inner emotions honestly and truly.  He almost got there by the time we opened.  He needed one more week of rehearsal, but I was extraordinarily proud of him.  He felt things while acting for maybe the first time and often had to ask for a moment to deal with the emotions that came up in him because he isn’t trained to context them and shape them as American actors are. 

Aaron, on the other hand, was simply wonderful.  He and I are not at a good point in our relationship – we are transitioning from co-Artistic Directors to no longer being partners so things are awkward and uncomfortable.  Which, of course, was perfect for the play – we were two married people who no longer communicated – who needed something else. 

So the play – “Betrayal” – is the transition for me.  And for FITC.  To a place of independence and solitude.  I am now sole Artistic Director of Florence International Theatre Company.  Like Emma in “Betrayal” I am divorced of my partner – I am free to do as I like and find out who I am in the world.  Which is what I am doing.

Of course, that is why I came to Florence in the first place.  Isn’t it?

Vi mando tanti baci ragazzi.

Bari