A theatrical invitation was extended to members of Faith and Light Rome, their families, friends, and anyone else who wished to attend. On Saturday, February 21st and Sunday, 22nd, at the hall of the San Paolo oratory, the production "After Me, the Flood" took the stage—a very loose adaptation (the creators emphasized the looseness) of the musical comedy "Add a Place at the Table."
The performance was a genuine triumph. Applause rolled on relentlessly, sometimes even bursting out mid-scene to celebrate the most polished moments or most striking effects. Like when Goffredo (apologies—Don Silvester) raised his hand and, as if by magic, a winking moon suspended in the sky suddenly blazed with light; and as the notes of "A Night Not to Sleep…" filled the air, the young performers moved slowly offstage in pairs. Or during the flood scene, where an ingenious and highly effective staging effect convinced us all that the second universal deluge was beginning.
Compliments came abundantly to everyone, and the praise was unanimous. Even for the most cheerful Clementina—Adriana, that is—as soon as people filed out, you heard it repeated from all sides: "Bravo, truly bravo."
A pity we could not add, as is customary at the end of a theater review, "coming back for an encore."
The performers speak…
How did the decision to stage this musical comedy come about?
Our production was an adventure that began three years ago. We had gone to the Sistina Theater to see "Add a Place at the Table," and we thought that this show—precisely because it blends songs, ballet, and dialogue—suited the artistic gifts of our group well. And it had a meaningful message all its own. So we got to work and built a production tailored to the group. This year we brought it back to raise funds for a pilgrimage to Lourdes, and also because theater is an activity where everyone—friends, handicapped young people, parents—can take an active role.
What about the script and the music?
We rewrote the script ourselves, based on the book "After Me, the Flood," which inspired the entire production. Rewriting meant adapting the various characters to match our actors' abilities and their own reality. For instance, Clementina's romantic love for Don Silvester became a pleasant friendship in our version, and the character of a woman of loose morals disappeared and was replaced by two vagrants struggling to be accepted.
The music was simpler, since we used the soundtrack from "Add a Place at the Table," with one small but clever touch: we kept the original recorded music in the background, so when our chorus sang, it felt almost like being at the Sistina Theater for real.
But the production wasn't just script and music. We had to organize ourselves carefully, dividing tasks, to avoid total chaos. Some people handled the script and music, as we said. Others created the choreography, building it to fit—making sure the rhythms, steps, entrances, and exits were manageable. Then someone stitched all the costumes. The idea of using everyday clothes was firmly rejected; the actors insisted that real theater meant dressing differently from daily life. So off we went to buy fabric and sew.
Who handled the set design and technical aspects?
Marcello was the scenic designer. He wasn't part of the Faith and Light group; he did set design as a hobby. We drafted him for the occasion, and as he worked with us, he decided to stay. Now he's an active member—what we call a "faith-and-lighter."
Francesco and Gianfranco, who attend the scout group here at the San Paolo Center, took charge of lighting. That's integration within integration, really—we made this production with the individual and collective help of other groups at the Center. You saw the animals in the ark? Well, those were the girls from the patronage, without any age discrimination (from four to twelve years old), who transformed themselves into animals on four wheels for the occasion.
How did you choose the cast?
Well, we held to the principle of "doing it together," and we assigned roles according to each person's abilities. For example: Adriana, with her natural, simple joy, was perfect for playing Clementina, the lead character.
The other handicapped friends were distributed through the various ballet sequences, supported—at a two-to-one ratio—by other participants. There was also a father who played the mayor. In short, a truly unique cast.
How many rehearsals did it take to get there?
This year we started in October. At first, we rehearsed once a week on our own, to build up the confidence we needed before bringing in the handicapped young people. Then we rehearsed with them, always once a week, from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
The rehearsals were a school of discipline for everyone. We learned punctuality, how to wait our turn, how to be patient. For the parents too it was a school: by the end, they'd learned not to chase their children with snacks, scarves against drafts, coats for the cold, and all the rest.
Did you have a working method?
Each friend was responsible on stage for one handicapped young person, or two. To make things easier, we made posters with diagrams of entrances and exits, which stayed backstage and were consulted as needed. Their memory did the rest. You'd be amazed—they remembered details from the production three years ago.
The working method was based on dividing tasks, as we said. That's crucial.
Were there difficulties?
With the tempo of the ballet sequences, absolutely. Getting music, steps, gestures, and movements to align—that was real work. For the slower dancers or actors, we did extra rehearsals: we'd practice individually with those who were struggling, and through repetition, they all made it onstage.
We didn't have real problems, or at least we treated them as normal occupational hazards. Small things that actually helped us pay closer attention to their world and their needs. The slow pace, for instance—we learned to take it one step at a time, to build the production piece by piece, never knowing for certain until the day of the show whether it would all hold together, whether we could pull off the whole thing in one go.
And you did. But what made this production possible, in your view?
The most important thing is that we already knew each other and met regularly before we started. We lived through those meetings together, and that let us know one another and measure our own strength.
Also, our group has a certain homogeneity—the young people have roughly the same abilities or the same difficulties. That matters a lot, because under those conditions it's easier to "do it together." And that was really the goal: "doing it together," with the parents and friends, all together, but with clear division of labor. We think that covers everything.
At this point in our interview, as the San Paolo group members were telling us the behind-the-scenes story, Don Vittorio—who had been listening quietly in the corner—spoke up.
"I would add," said Don Vittorio, "that our success with 'After Me, the Flood' owes much to the structure itself, the San Paolo Center, where we gather. Here we have a theater, we have space, we have the equipment we needed—lights, microphones, and so on. There are so many other groups here, which means we could find the right person with the right talent. And there's availability and welcome. These are important factors. They gave us the concrete possibility not only of staging this production, but of getting to know each other, of living together, of being the Faith and Light Group of San Paolo."
(edited by Nicole Schultes and Manuela Bartesaghi)