"Se questo è Levi" by Fanny & Alexander at the Senate of Belgium
For three weeks –May 7 to 28– the Kunstenfestivaldesarts has invited artists from all over the world to redefine the boundaries of theatre, dance and performing arts.
The 2022 edition takes place in more than 30 venues in and around Brussels, both in tradition and in unconventional places, chosen according to the artistic projects. Fanny & Alexander theatre company can thus present their show Se questo è Levi (If this is Levi) in a particular context: the Senate of Belgium.
«Proposed to the public installed in the hemicycle of the Senate, like contemporary politicians, Se questo è Levi is an extraordinary performance and a lucid warning of the ease with which Europe has slipped into the dehumanization of part of its citizens», we read in the Festival introduction.
An actor plays the role of the writer, imitating his voice, posture, tones, and mannerisms. The public is invited to raise their hand and ask, from a list provided, one of the questions Levi was also asked during his lifetime. When answering, the performer simultaneously hears the recording of Levi's answers in the headset. He therefore does not read them, but "is read" by a voice that governs his body, like a chemical process. The spoken sentences sound surprisingly lively, as if said for the first time.
The performance is part of the wider project Se questo è Levi Fanny & Alexander has dedicated to the Holocaust survivor Italian writer, starting from audio and video documents of the RAI Archives. “Primo Levi –explains director Luigi De Angelis– is among the intellectuals who are most lacking in our days and to whom one returns more naturally every time there is an urgent need to ask questions about freedom, rights, imprisonment, the value of memory and testimony”.
The dramaturgy is curated by Chiara Lagani. Actor Andrea Argentieri, who plays the role of the writer, was awarded the 2019 Ubu Prize as Best actor or performer under 35, while the Company was awarded the 2019 Ubu Special Prize for the whole project.
Se questo è Levi is scheduled on May 7 and 8, presented in English, French, and Dutch simultaneous translation (at 05:00 pm, 07:00 pm. 09:00 pm).
Fanny & Alexander’s tour in Brussels is supported by the Italian Cultural Institute in Brussels, Emilia-Romagna Region and ATER Fondazione.
