A night in Reggio

Post on Florence will be coming in the next few days, once I get my wifi connection under control - Reggio Emilia isn't quite internationalized enough to have the kind of cafes where young people hunker down and get work done online (that I've found yet, anyways) and my AirBnB's internet is spotty. But a few scattered fragments here to fill the time... as usual, after a photo and the jump.

Reggio Emilia lookin' pretty tonight

Saw a production of Sam Shepard's True West here tonight. Surreal to see a play I know reasonably well (never done it, but have coached scene work from it and seen it multiple times) in a language I only minimally speak. You really haven't seen theatre as it's meant to be until you've spent most of a play going "Oh, he just said sandwich! Hey I know the word sandwich! Is this what it's like when babies go to the theatre."

After the show, I pulled out my phone to text a friend I hadn't pinged in a while, having been reminded of his own work in an unrelated play, and scrolling back to find where last I'd left him in my messaging, I overshot and ended up in last summer, which was - to put it mildly - another time.

Rattled, I went walking toward the main piazza, where I'd earlier seen workers setting up for a street festival. It was in full swing now, with a hard-rock band playing covers of Backstreet Boys while kids danced in a fountain now lit by colored lights. As the band switched over to "Tubthumping" (a little on-the-nose, but true!) I began to walk again, feeling better as I always do by being in the swirl of a community and watching people argue, flirt, joke, and stroll quietly. On my way back home, I came across the finish of a second street festival - an citywide dinner party potluck with an all-white theme. Picnic tables draped in white cloths, Italian people being excruciatingly fashionable in white linen and sleek dresses, and more than a couple of tables with an Alice in Wonderland theme.

There's so much life and connection in this town. Being off the beaten path (in relative terms) means that you have a much stronger sense of the community, and that you stand out a bit more as an outsider. (I've been fielding queries as to whether I'm British all weekend, and more than a couple of people have expressed astonishment that I've come all the way from Chicago.) That's been lovely and challenging all at once. As is becoming the theme of the trip writ large - a balance of great joy and discovery, connection and newness, against the occasional moments of loneliness and sadness. Discovery and joy continue to win the day, but I keep thinking it's important to honor the full spectrum, keeping myself honest and remembering to keep all things in balance as I keep swimming toward the shore of The Future!

OK, that's it for now. Stay tuned for FLORENCE, and another round of friendship!