A Bench on the Road is a play that spans 100 years and tells the stories of six women. This period from 1850 to 1950 is one of global Italian migration when 25 million Italians, one of the largest human migrations to date, left their country between political unification and the post WWII economic boom. Many thousands made their home in Scotland, especially since the 1880s, with further migration peaks around the World Wars and rise of Fascism, generating one of the most successful socio-economical integrations on record. The play analyses a range of issues arising from this important phenomenon, from the perspective of women focussing on their key role in migration and integration in the period.
A Bench on the Road is the result of research commissioned in 2013 by the University of Edinburgh under the Italian-Scottish Research Cluster project (ISRC). The script, written by Laura Pasetti, is based on archival items such as recorded interviews and other personal documents regarding and involving women held by the ISRC.
The Italo-Scottish community constitutes a large and vibrant ethnic group in Scotland where Italians have contributed to the development of Scotland’s identity through time and history. Three Italian-Scottish and three Scottish actresses will be involved in this development where traditional Italian and Scottish songs will be explored. A Bench on the Road will show the result of the development period of physical research lead by two masters of physical theatre, Andrzej and Teresa Welminski, former actors of the internationally acclaimed theatre company Cricot 2 funded by Tadeusz Kantor.
A Bench on the Road is a project in co-production with Italian Cultural Institute of Edinburgh, realized with the contribution of Creative Scotland and the patronage of Piccolo Teatro di Milano.
Friday 20th February
Summerhall – Edinburgh