A theatrical event for the members of Fede e Luce Rome. Their families, friends, and anyone interested were invited to attend a performance of "After Me, the Flood" on Saturday, February 21 and Sunday, February 22 (1981, ed.) at the hall of the San Paolo oratory. The play was freely adapted—very freely adapted, as the creators themselves said—from the musical comedy "Add a Place at the Table".
The performance was a genuine triumph. The applause never stopped, sometimes breaking out even between scenes to celebrate the most successful or striking moments. Like when Goffredo (or rather, Don Silvestro) raised a hand and, as if by magic, a crescent moon suspended in the sky suddenly glowed. Or when the actors moved slowly offstage in pairs to the strains of "A Night Not to Sleep." Or the flood scene—a brilliant technical effect that convinced everyone they were witnessing a second universal deluge. Compliments poured in from all sides, with particular celebration for Clementina, played by Adriana. As people left, you could hear repeated on all sides: "Wonderful, truly wonderful."
Only one thing was missing—the usual closing line of a theater review: "Coming back soon."
(Enrica Cofano)
An Interview with the Cast and Crew
How did you decide to put on this musical?
Our show began as an adventure three years ago. We went to the Sistina Theatre to see this production—we liked that it mixed songs, dances, and spoken dialogue. Those elements suited the artistic talents of our group well, and the story had something real to say. So we got to work and built a show that fit our group perfectly. This year we brought it back to raise money for a pilgrimage to Lourdes and because a production like this is an activity where everyone—friends, disabled young people, parents—can take an active part.
Who wrote the script and music?
We wrote the script ourselves, basing it on the book "After Me, the Flood," which inspired the whole show. Rewriting meant adapting the characters to match what our actors could do, and to reflect their own reality. For example, Clementina's romantic love for Don Silvestro became a pleasant friendship in our version. The morally loose woman character disappeared and was replaced by two vagabonds struggling to be accepted.
The music was simpler. We used the original soundtrack from "Add a Place at the Table," with one clever twist: we kept the original music on a backing track. That way, when our choir sang, it felt almost like being at the Sistina Theatre itself.
But the show wasn't just about script and music. We had to organize ourselves to avoid total chaos.
Some people handled the script and music, as we said. Others designed the dances—building them to fit our actors' abilities, so the rhythms, steps, and entrances and exits weren't too complicated. And someone sewed all the costumes. We rejected the idea of using everyday clothes outright. The actors insisted that to do real theater, you had to dress differently from how you dress every day. So we bought fabric and sewed.
Read more articles about theater and disability
Who designed the sets and handled the technical side?
Our set designer was Marcello. He wasn't part of the Fede e Luce group—he designed sets as a hobby. We recruited him for this project, and working with us, he decided to stay. Now he's an active member of our group.
Francesco and Gianfranco, who attend the scout group here at San Paolo, handled the lights. It was an example of integration within integration—we realized this show with individual and collective help from other groups at the center. Did you see the animals in the Ark? They were young skaters, ages four to twelve, who transformed themselves into animals on roller skates, without any age discrimination.
How did you choose your actors?
Our core principle was "doing things together." We assigned roles based on individual abilities. Adriana, with her simplicity and excellent memory, was perfect to play Clementina, the lead. The other disabled friends were distributed among various dance numbers, paired—in a two-to-one ratio—with other participants. One father played the Mayor. It was truly a unique cast.
How many rehearsals did it take to get ready?
We started last October. At first, the non-disabled members rehearsed once a week to gain confidence before bringing in the disabled participants. Then we rehearsed with them once a week, from four to seven-thirty in the evening. Rehearsals became a school of discipline for everyone: we learned to be punctual, to wait our turn, to be patient. For the parents too—by the end, they'd learned to stop chasing after their children with snacks, scarves, coats, and all the rest.
Did you develop a working method?
Each helper was responsible for one or two disabled actors onstage. We also used large charts showing the entrances and exits, which stayed backstage and were consulted as needed. Memory did the rest. You'd be amazed—they remembered details from the show three years ago. Our method was based on dividing tasks, as we mentioned. That's very important.
Did you run into difficulties?
Difficulties? Yes—with the rhythm of the dances. Getting the music, steps, gestures, and movements to sync together was hard. For the slower dancers and actors, we did extra rehearsals with them individually. We kept working until everyone was ready to perform.
We didn't have real problems—or at least we treated them as normal part of the work, small things anyway—and they helped us become more attentive to their way of working and their needs.
The slow pace, for instance: we learned to take it one step at a time, to build the show piece by piece. That meant going into performance day with the question hanging over our heads: "Will it all come together? Can we pull off the whole thing at once?"
And you did. What do you think made this show possible?
Look, the most important thing is that we knew each other and met together before we started the show. We lived together in those meetings, and that let us know each other and understand our strengths. Second, our group has a kind of natural balance—the young people have roughly the same abilities and the same difficulties. That matters a lot, because under those conditions it's easier to "do things together." And that was really our goal: to do things together, with the parents, with the friends, together overall—but with clear division of who did what. I think that covers it.
At this point in our interview, as the San Paolo group members were sharing behind-the-scenes stories, Don Vittorio, who had been listening quietly in the corner, joined the conversation.
"I would add," Don Vittorio said, "that our success with 'After Me, the Flood' owes something to the structure of this place—San Paolo Center, where we meet. We have a theater here, we have space, lights, microphones, and we have many other groups. That means we can find the right person with the right talent. And there's openness and hospitality. Those are important elements. They gave us the real chance to make this show—and more than that, to get to know each other, to live together, to be the Fede e Luce group of San Paolo."
From Insieme, no. 29, 1981
edited by Nicole Shulthes and Manuela Bartesaghi