I remember the Granice Festival in Wroclaw:
flying with turbulence
Caterina’s arm that I can hold if I am afraid
Luana who meditates
the dry cold of Poland
Me looking for a tobacco shop
but I find cigarettes at the supermarket
the workshops every morning
and I who never have the right clothing
sore muscles
awkward smiles
unfamiliar hands shaking
supporting the weight of others
fall and then get up again
find the color of your own voice
let it out with conviction
make Byung-Chul Han converse with Giordano Bruno
“Excessive performance leads to the heart attack of the soul.”
to be blind and dumb
in our individual hells
with the weariness that divides us
Grotowski’s beard
in the center of the square
and his presence in all corners
Pawel recounting
Cain and Abel
a chorus of dark and hammering male voices
the story of an absence
and then a guitar
cultivating guilt
washing the head
opening the eyes
the red bricks of a prison that used to be a madhouse
Diego’s black clothes
the colored shirts of the boys who follow him
the discipline
the smoking rooms
the English that becomes Italian
that becomes Polish
which becomes Bulgarian
which becomes German
which eventually becomes English again
underpasses full of colorful writing
the hidden courtyards
Finding each other every evening in the same bar
like old countrymen
and knowing you are in the right place
S.B.
The Granice/Borders festival in Wroclaw was an incredible experience. Going to the Prison and getting to see the work of Diego up close was amazing, you could really tell that the prisoners were enjoying their time away from their usual struggles and horrible conditions they must put up with in their day to day lives. Although the prison clearly did not have the standards of the ones in Italy and Germany the spirit of the people was clearly still there. I really loved every activity and workshop we did, the opening gallery was fantastic as the pictures taken were incredible considering they weren’t posing for them. The performance from the womans prison was gripping and it really made me re think my privilege in society as a man. The performance of Cain and Abel was also captivating and I felt the topic was perfectly chosen. And even though because of Covid and permissions the prisoners themselves could not perform both performances from the male and female prisons were very engaging and that is due to the creativity of Jubilo and the rest of the people involved. The whole festival was absolutely amazing and it was an honour to be there.
C.K.
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