Writings on the tournée

18/11/2004 - A thankyou to:

Ansam, Haneen, Intimaa, Majd, Maram A., Maram F, Maram M., Rawan, Zahra
Ahmed, Ashraf, Ayman, Aysar, Loai, Mohamed, Naim, Nour Aldin, Raed, Rami, Walid
Ahmed, Danellayonella, Jehad, Khaled and Noah
”Chi sono? Come mi chiamo? Dove abito? Il colore della mia pelle? Le mie speranze?
Il mio compleanno? Cosa amo? Cosa odio?”
(Who am I? What’s my name? Where do I live? What colour is my skin?
What are my hopes? When is my birthday? What do I love? What do I hate?)
These are eight questions you answered which underscore the artistic, cultural and moral significance of your tour around Italy.
For you, and us, they were seventeen intense days charged with humanity.
Gifts were exchanged.
Gifts of artistic creativity, gifts of welcome, gifts of hope, gifts of friendship, gifts of emotion.
Through the language of dance you spoke intense words of truth charged with humanity, about your life as young people, your life as refugees, about the tragedy of the Palestinian people.
We dedicated your tour to Edward Said’s memory. He defined Palestinian tragedy as the tragedy of being the victims’ victims.
You finished your performances with a song from the Italian Resistance, ‘Bella Ciao’, which also belongs to the Palestinian national movement for freedom. And this ending was also an intense gift charged with humanity.
During your stay with us our eyes often met with the sensitivity of a culture which goes back thousands of years, with the meaningfulness of art, the only meaningfulness of truth, with you, very young artists, marked by anxiety for freedom and justice.
We were able to meet eyes with you who gather fragments of memories, who sow fragments of utopias, who are building fragments of futures.
Arezzo, Cinisello Balsamo, Firenze, Gorizia, Ivrea, Modena, Monfalcone, Padua, Parma, Schio, Turin, Udine, Varese, Verona, Vicenza but also, for example, Sala Baganza (Parma), Tarcento (Udine), Bajo Dora (Ivrea), a small but significant part of Italian society, welcomed you, they welcomed you with the warmth you deserved.
An intense wish charged with humanity has stayed with us all, one that wants to be able to welcome you again in the near future.
Why this wish?
Because you gave all of us intense proof charged with humanity that behind a Wall, in a Wall, in spite of Walls, dancing, dancing the hope, is possible.

With Thanks,

Alfredo Tradardi 30th October 2004 (translation by Angelica Bannon)

30 Ottobre 2004  Il ringraziamento in arabo