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Pageant Puppetry Workshop in Northern Italy
June 20 - 28, 2009
This summer, participate in a week-long workshop in pageant puppetry, culminating in a community-wide Midsummer Pageant. Collaborate with international and local participants to create an event that pays tribute to the traditions of ritual celebration in a small and remote village high in the Italian Alps.
Master Puppet Designers Alex Kahn and Sophia Michahelles will guide you through the production of the Pageant. Drawing inspiration from the lives and history of the village, as well as from local traditions of Summer Solstice celebrations, known in Italy as the feast of Saint John the Baptist, you will work closely as a group to create a Night Procession of Lanterns and Puppet Procession and Festa the following day. You will learn, through hands-on experience, how to construct giant puppets, banners, lanterns and musical instruments.
The workshop will be hosted by Christa Gaebler at Casa dei Fiori, a newly restored complex of traditional stone houses. Christa, a world-class gourmet chef, will introduce participants to the tastes of early Italian summer, through elaborate communal meals, with ingrediants fresh from the garden. Preparations of ritual foods for the Pageant will include activities such as visiting the local cheese farm and helping to bake bread in the communal wood-fired oven.
The Festival
The Summer Solstice marks the longest day of the year, when the sun reaches its zenith and begins its slow descent. Observed as a sacred day in cultures throughout the world, the Solstice has inspired celebrations since ancient times. In Catholic Italy, the pre-Christian observance of Midsummer is merged with the cult of Saint John the Baptist, observed on June 24th.
Folk traditions consider this seasonal turning point to be magical, a time when bowls of water and fresh flowers are put out to keep the witches at bay, affections are sealed under the auspices of the patron Saint of Friendship, and giant wheels of fire are rolled through the fields to re-enact of the Sun's journey and ensure its cyclical return. In Rome, a feast of snails - whose horns link them to the Devil - ritualizes a triumph over evil. The traditions vary from region to region, even from town to town, with diverse sources, rites, and iconography. But everywhere the essential meaning is the same - a marking of cyclical time, a prayer of Light, and, as the sun begins its descent, a reminder of the transience of all things.
In the village of Morinesio, during the week following the Summer Solstice, we will draw upon the traditions of Saint John the Baptist, the life of Morinesio, and our own experiences to develop a unique Midsummer celebration. We will make giant puppets, masks, banners, musical instruments, lanterns and ritual foods in preparation for two processions.The first will take place at night, an intimate pageant of light, delicate and ephemeral. The second will happen on the following day in celebration of the start of summer. The giant puppets will be brought to life by their makers and will dance through the decorated streets with local villagers, moving in step to the rhythms of traditional Occitan music.We will end, as all Italian rituals must, with a sumptuous feast, open to workshop participants and villagers alike.
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The Village of Morinesio and the Origins of the Troubadour
Morinesio lies nestled high in the mountains bordering France and Italy. Although only two hours from Turin, the village of Morinesio seems removed from the world. From an altitude of 4500 feet (1450 m) it offers spectacular views of the surrounding mountains and the Val Maira valley, one of the wildest of the Piedmont region, virtually untouched by development.
Morinesio is in one of the few pockets of Occitan in Italy. This distinct culture that spreads from northwestern Italy, through Provencal France to Catalan Spain has its own language, the Langue d'Oc, still spoken by 2 million people. Predating Italian or French, Langue d'Oc is the oldest written Romance language. It was used by the troubadours for their lyric poetry from the 11th to the 13th centuries, after which it was repressed by the northern political powers. Occitan culture and language are now regaining recognition. Langue d'Oc is now being preserved in local schools, in the occitan menus of certain restaurants, and in the local musical traditions, where the legacy of the troubadours lives on.
During the last century, life in the remote villages was no longer sustainable and many villagers moved to the valley cities. Morinesio was nearly abandoned. An interest in preserving the medieval villages and an appreciation for the wild landscape has inspired many of the old families and new settlers to revitalize Morinesio and create a new community. Our Midsummer Festival, while celebrating the ancient return of the Sun, celebrates as well the modern rejuvenation of Morinesio.
The Artists
Alex Kahn and Sophia Michahelles, (Designers) are the chief designers of Superior Concept Monsters, an ensemble of puppeteers, musicians, artists, and choreographers dedicated to the art of pageant puppetry. They design and build, through a series of community workshops, the giant puppets that lead New York's Annual Village Halloween Parade. Alex is American and Sophia is half American, half Italian.
More about Superior Concept Monsters . . .
Christa Gaebler, (host, producer, chef) proprietor of Casa dei Fiori, hails from Stuttgart, Germany. She has owned several successful restaurants in both Germany and the United States. She now makes her home in Morinesio, Italy, and enjoys renovating farmhouses and expanding her flower and vegetable gardens.
More about Casa dei Fiori . . .
Accommodations:
All particpants are housed in the lovely Casa dei Fiori, or in one of the neighboring Morinesio stone farmhouses that have been converted into comfortable guest accomodations with modern conveniences. Participants have their choice of various living arrangements, ranging from luxurious private apartments, to economical but comfortable shared rooms. Prices vary depending on private/shared accommodations, and walking distance from the puppet workshop.
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Reservations and Information
The workshop runs from Saturday, June 20 to Sunday, June 28. Cost for the workshop varies depending on accommodations. Prices for 2009 will be posted soon. Reservations confirmed before Mac 1, 2009 receive a 10% discount. Workshop fee includes the following:
- Workshop tuition and all materials
- Housing and daily traditional breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Private Transit to from Bus/ Train station in Cuneo
- Guided tour of medieval village of Elva, local cheese farm, and other areas of interest
- Traditional Occitan step-dancing lessons in village piazza
Contact for reservations, pricing or more info:
Christa and Fritz Gaebler
telephone: (39) 017.1999303
email: email@casadeifiori.de
Booking Terms and Conditions:
Reservations will be accepted until May 25, 2009. To confirm your reservation, we require a 500 Euro deposit per person (non-refundable). Final payment is due upon arrival at workshop. Payment may be made in either American dollars or Euros and is payable by traveler's checks or personal check to Christa Gaebler. Credit cards are not accepted. We reserve the right to cancel the workshop for insufficient participation and will let you know by June 1. If this happens, our sole responsibility is to provide you with a full refund. We do not pay compensation or incur liability for travel expenses or other expenses you have incurred. For this reason we recommend that you acquire travel insurance to refund your airfare if event is cancelled. In the unlikely event that the workshop is cancelled, we offer the option for you to stay at Casa die Fiori at a rate of 500 Euros for the week.
Pictures from the Previous Workshops and Processions
NEW: 2008 Pictures now online!
2003 
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2005