13 January 2020
It is with great pride that the Calabria Acting School received the visit of the Honorable Anna Laura Orrico, Undersecretary of State of the Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities, and of Sen. Giuseppe Fabio Auddino, on Friday 10 January.
An important event for the entire School - conceived and directed by Walter Cordopatri, coordinated by Giorgio Colangeli, sponsored by the Municipality of Cittanova, in official collaboration with the Giffoni Film Festival - which saw the participation of parents and students of all classes, of the teachers Mario Parlagreco, Santo Nicito, Chiara Tomaselli, Daniela D'Agostino, Renata Falcone and Sara Cannavò, and of the collaborators Eurema Pentimalli, Carolina Sergi, Pasquale Sicilian. Also present in the room were representatives of the police forces and local schools.
A highly anticipated visit full of meaning for a young reality like the SRC, which, three years after its inauguration, had the opportunity for the first time to interact with national institutions, in a meeting that wanted to be as less formal as possible, putting aside great proclamations and instead trying to establish a dialogue, a moment of sharing and exchange.
The meeting was introduced by Director Walter Cordopatri who briefly outlined its objectives, focusing on the constructive discussion that could arise from it. Since he was unable to be present, however, the Teaching Coordinator, Giorgio Colangeli, sent a video message, with the hope that the meeting could be the first step towards broader recognition of the school by the institutions.
This was followed by the speech of the Mayor, Francesco Cosentino, who expressed in a very warm way his happiness for the presence in Cittanova of Undersecretary Orrico and Senator Auddino, for the attention they reserved for the school, placing attention on the importance of the unstoppable growth path that the school has implemented for three years - recognized and supported by the municipal administration which is working for the assignment of a new headquarters - and which has taken on an even greater scope broad, thanks also to the increasingly solid collaboration with the Giffoni Film Festival. He therefore wanted to greet the staff of the Giffoni Film Festival, in the persons of the Director, Claudio Gubitosi, and Marco Cesaro, Head of Institutional Relations, who should have been present at the meeting but was unable to do so due to health problems.
The word passed again to Director Cordopatri, who wanted to underline the numbers of the School: "140 students selected every year; 500 presences on site every 15 days; 1 Triennio Accademico (MasterClass); 5 workshops divided by age group; 18 highly qualified teachers; 18 disciplines; 10 collaborators. To date the SRC has created: 8 theater shows every year; 4 theater productions, plus one in progress; 2 film productions (short films), one of which was presented at the Giffoni Film Festival; 7 external workshops with nationally and internationally renowned artists; 2 intercultural exchanges with the Netherlands; over 30 events organized independently and/or in collaboration with other local associations; the participation of 10 students as official jurors in the last 3 Giffoni Festivals; Giffoni Festival; SEF (School Experience Festival), a traveling film festival for children in collaboration with the Giffoni Film Festival. The Director also wanted to thank the Municipal administration for having made available the structure of the Polo Solidale per la Legalità "F. Vinci", which has hosted the school in these 3 years, and hoped to be able to continue in this vein, with particular thanks also to the entire school team: "an extraordinary group which to date, by embracing the project and investing its energies in it, has allowed this small but great reality to make the difference".
Sen. Auddino opened his speech by expressing his bond with Cittanova, which saw him as a teacher at the Guerrisi Scientific High School. From here he focused on the importance of teaching, on the ability to "teach = mark inside", that is, to leave a mark, something concrete that helps young people face life and accompanies them on their growth path. To this end, he wanted to underline the importance of artistic disciplines and activities, capable of forming the individual at 360°. He recognized the great value of what the SRC has done in recent years: a reality he did not know about, which he is happy to have discovered so close to his hometown, and which must certainly be encouraged and supported in all possible ways so that it continues to grow and help the entire community in which it operates grow.
The Director took the floor again, introducing a short video presentation of the school and underlining how all this was done "without any external financial support", retracing what in the past was the case for institutions such as the Academy of Dramatic Arts of Palmi which, thanks to public funding, allowed young people to study for free and provided them with food, accommodation and even a small daily expense reimbursement, truly guaranteeing the right to study and protecting the work of great professionals with salaries appropriate to their qualifications. This is a parenthesis aimed at making us reflect on how today's reality often forces those who want to contribute to the cultural growth of their territory to make huge sacrifices and the increasingly pressing need to review the distribution policies of economic resources to better support cultural activities, so that the dream of giving young people the real possibility of training again can be realized, without having to face such important economic sacrifices that for many are limiting.
Following this reflection, Mario Parlagreco and Santo Nicito, SRC teachers and collaborators, spoke, emphasizing the great commitment of the entire teaching staff, the great sacrifices faced so far, in support of a project that has great potential and which has become a shared dream, on the need to grow, remaining small, launching an appeal for the institutions to recognize the importance of supporting those who, through art, continue to make people "play" and dream. And it is a dream, pulled out of the drawer thanks to the SRC, that Sergio Nicolaci, a second year MasterClass student, is trying to pursue, who made a point of telling everyone about his experience within the School, and the profound meaning that this has taken on for his professional and human growth. The emphasis was therefore on the students, on teaching and on meritocracy, a theme that launched a small surprise performance by the students Federica Sottile (MasterClass III) and Fabio Taca (MasterClass II), who had the opportunity to perform in front of two high officials of the State, as a reward for having had the highest average marks in their respective classes, choosing for the occasion a monologue by Claudio Bisio taken from the film "Welcome President". Afterwards, an exceptional unscheduled event with the arrival in the theater of the very nice actor Paolo Migone passing through Cittanova with his show "Completamente dishevelled".
In conclusion, the most awaited speech, that of the Undersecretary of State, the absolute guest of the entire event: the Honorable Anna Laura Orrico spoke with delicacy and elegance, saying she was "truly proud, as a Calabrian and as a representative of the government of this country to be present and to rediscover a Calabria that I know very well. I have always believed that Calabria is not just what the media tells us about". He also expressed his joy at having had the opportunity to officially get to know the SRC, personally recommended by Claudio Gubitosi, Director of the Giffoni Film Festival. Having dealt with design in the past, she feels particularly close to this type of reality, she knows its dynamics and believes in the importance of supporting the work of what she has defined as "excellence", recognizing the importance of artistic disciplines, which she has also practiced in the past, and which are capable of forging character and at the same time breaking down many of the limits that are commonly imposed on us. A reality to be encouraged, therefore, to be stimulated even more and strongly supported, promoting its activities through all local and, above all, national institutions.
Finally, Mayor Cosentino and some SRC students delivered to the Hon. Orrico respectively the symbol of Cittanova and an official plaque, as a sign of recognition and gratitude for having personally come to know a small but great reality like the Calabria Acting School which still has a great desire to grow, learn and officially become a fundamental point of reference for the acting training of the entire South. The path is certainly the right one so all that remains is to follow it aware that dreams can and must turn into reality.