Theatre Performances - Vaniada
       
      Lasciar Ada - Leaving Ada
       
     

Vaniada is a sort of leaving. The two ultra-centenarian protagonists, Ada and Van, are almost at the end of their story, they have ideally merged themselves together and they have become one archetypal being, now they must face the great dilemma of the end: the fact of living in a play also means giving up one’s own life when the play is going to end.

Vaniada is about the last part of the work with a particular reference to Time and Memory. This is one of the most important theme of the novel, thus we can only now fully face up to it. It is a very hard theme, it is almost impossible to achieve its representation. As always, the play contains an issue about Memory. But what happens if this Memory becomes an uncertain shadow, a mere loss? What if the traces we have followed until now (like solvers of enigmas and private eyes of the play) stuck vaguely on our bodies, imprinting a nearly unrecognizable mark? What happens if Memory becomes a vague sign that has left or is going to leave on us? At that very moment the play almost seems a mirror, from time to time we are allowed to be reflected in it. Beyond our doubtful appearances, Ada and Van will not be seen anymore, nor recognized.

In order to elaborate this theme, it has been used a linguistic mechanism, maybe one of the most misleading word play: the charade. The nerve centre of the whole Memory theme and of its ambiguous reflexes has to be found in the linguistic strategy of the charade, or, to be more precise, in the double meaning sentence. What is a charade? “In order to get a charade, it is necessary to choose a suitable word and then “cut it” in two parts, one should be careful with the point where the imaginary knife has to drive. A charade can be defined on the one hand as a unique word, which can be divided, giving birth to other two new words; on the other hand, a charade is also a union of two word put together in order to get a third new word.” (Lezioni di Enigmistica, S. Bartezzaghi). For instance: la sciarada (the charade) = lasciar Ada (leaving Ada). “Is it indeed the same thing?”, wonders Bartezzaghi. Not exactly: “The author of the charade chooses an entire word and then he divides it in two, hoping to get two meaningful words. While the solver tries to unite two words in order to get one meaningful word. Once again, it is useless to repeat it again, the battle about sense takes place on the two-faced front of the symbol reassembling and everything will depend on the collaboration between the watcher and who is watched.

The word-monster, “Vaniada”, now seems to be a new inexplicable enigma. Where shall we put our invisible knife that divides us from this play? Maybe along the black I that separates the names of the two lovers? Yes, the long ultra thin I ( E in Russian) probably is the point where we shall cut, a piercing cut, division and conjunction in the title-word of the final show, a show that can finish in one way only: it tells us it is impossible to end.

(translation by Deborah Babini)

       
       
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Promenada | Lucinda Museum | Aqua Marina | Adescamenti | Ardis II | Ardis I

       
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