“I learned that you can talk without talking” says E.
Elisa Biava and Marco Cinnirella, Social and Community Theatre operators engaged in Crotone in the psycho-social intervention program Io non viaggio solo of SOS Children’s Villages in partnership with SCT Centre, tell us about some of the many discoveries that are made every day working with unaccompanied foreign minors (UFM) in Extraordinary Reception Centers. Marco and Elisa meet with the kids weekly and conduct a series of workshops on Life Skills with them.
Elisa’s testimony
«I learned that you can talk without talking», says E.
A group activity has just ended in which we mimed actions that, little by little, from daily actions became expressions of their dreams (E. listens to a companion’s chest, O. sings), of their experience (M. shoots with a rifle, I. whips the companion next to him), and of their desires (S. draws a girl in the air and dances with her in the middle of the circle).
Ina place like the CAS, where words struggle to come out because they are not known or because they are mediated by translation, I observe the kids during the workshops, discovering the time of listening and giving value to non-verbal language.
Marco’s testimony
«I have no money, but I have a girlfriend»
«Why, do you need money to have a girlfriend?»
«Well, yes…»
«Why? It’s not like you have to buy her at the market…»
Who is around you? Who are the people, close or far from you, with whom you can talk? Through theatrical exercises we ask them to tell us a little about themselves, with the aim of creating moments of sharing that, probably, in the daily life of the center are rare.
«In Africa I danced in front of people, in big events. Every day I think about how much I would like to, how much I would like to dance here in Italy too. […] If I have someone to imitate? Like who says I would like to be like this or that footballer? No, no. I have my style. If anything, others will imitate me.»
By experiencing theatre there is space, of course, also to talk about emotions…
«I felt joy, because in letting myself go I remembered good things, good memories. I felt neither anger nor boredom, but only joy. I felt good. Then sadness, because when I opened my eyes the good memories vanished. Even though I was sad I kept making her dance well: I watched her dance and I realized that everything I had seen before was imagination…»
The opportunities to meet with their Italian peers are few and made difficult by distrust. But the desire to go out and discover “Italy” is great…
«I think about what life is like, what life is. I think about my family in Africa. I drew the backpack to go to school, here in Italy, to know what life is.»
