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In Tourists and boy-soldiers Wole Soyinka describes a meeting between young boys deeply divided by their own personal experiences: the “tourists” are a group of school children at the end of a trip to one of the many south seas paradises, tormented by deep social strains hidden by the government because of business interests; the “boy-soldiers” are the same age, but they have been moulded by tragic war experiences much bigger than them, unbearable even for “mature” human beings. Like in a distorting mirror, the Tourists have to face the decisions of the Boy-soldiers, deprived of their childhood and adolescence by the war, that put “real” guns into their hands, thus giving them the power to call the shots and hold the tourists hostages. We are at an airport occupied by these baby-guerrillas who don’t have much time for what seems to be their real aim. The borders between truth and lie become faint. What happened between the young commander with his body guards on one side, and the young tourists on the other side? Which abyss did they look into, that made each of them go through with their own choices?

The mise en espace with the students of Civica Accademia d’Arte Drammatica “Nico Pepe” in Udine, directed by Claudio De Maglio with Francesco Godina’s assistance, tries to emphasize exactly the relation between the two worlds, wondering about the things that are not said rather than those that are expressed by words. What urges both Tourists and Boy-soldiers to raise the level of their provocation beyond any limit? A fascinating aspect of this play is that no positions are taken, but evidence is given of a most paradoxical situation, while the frailties and hypocrisies of the so called “advanced” societies are highlighted.

Claudio De Maglio

Claudio De Maglio
is an actor, director, playwright and educator, who has been working for a long time with major national companies, performing his own plays at the main Italian and European festivals. A specialist in performance techniques, he is the director of the Civica Accademia d’Arte Drammatica “Nico Pepe” in Udine.