On December 11th 2001 the Miracle Players set out for Tarquinia to perform "The
History of Rome" despite rumours of wild panthers roaming
the Tarquinian countryside.
We received an invitation from Ms Francesca Subrizi of the Italian Middle School
"Ettore Sacconi" in Tarquinia to perform "The History of Rome" for her
students. The request came after her son came and thoroughly enjoyed
the summer version of the show in the Roman forum. In fact, he enjoyed it so
much he thought it would be nice if his school mates could see it too. Ms
Francesca Subrizi, along with her colleagues at "Ettore Sacconi", organised the
performance of "The History of Rome" for the students' Christmas party. Special thanks also go to Dr Osvaldo Pesiri, the headmaster of "Ettore Sacconi",
and Dr Gentili for the use of the Aula Magna at the Centro Capotorti di
Tarquinia.
Here are the students as they await the unfolding saga of
"The History of Rome":
Thanks to a mixture of their knowledge of the history of Rome and a
fair comprehension of English, the
students greatly enjoyed the performance. To assist the
students
we performed in our usual physical style, exaggerated our visual gags and gave
less emphasis on our textual jokes, especially the idiomatic ones.
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An usually cold December may help to explain this backstage
version of our costume. When show time arrived, however,
the extra layers were peeled off and the show was performed in our usual
costume.
Well... with the addition of long johns and tights. |
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We prepared a quiz for the students that was conducted like a quiz show after
the performance. If the student gave the correct answer they were given the
Emperors crown, if they gave the wrong answer the barbarians were allowed to
punish them with their axes (plastic of course). Consequently, the stakes were
high!
See if you are an emperor or a barbarian by answering the quiz we prepared for the
students of "Ettore Sacconi".
TARQUINIA
Tarquinia is about 90km away from Rome and started life as an Etruscan city.
Tarquinia today is most famous for the Necropolis or Tombs. When we asked advice
on what to see in the city the tourist board answered, "When you're in Egypt you
see the pyramids when you are in Tarquinia you see the tombs".
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That being said, after the performance we set out to explore the
tombs, some of which date back to the 6th Cent. B.C. Unfortunately,
we were overcome by "The return of the living dead" coming out of
one of the tombs. Although on closer inspection they do seem to look
very familiar. |
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If you would like the Miracle Players to perform for your
school, please don't hesitate to
contact us.
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