An extraordinary page of humanity, solidarity and civil commitment. E’ the story of the “Angels of the Mud”, the story of thousands of young people, from all over Italy and abroad, who arrived in Florence in the aftermath of the tragic flood of 1966 to lend a hand to the population. Boys and girls without any office or uniform, with few means: their boots, shovels, buckets, and an immense desire to make themselves useful.
A story that today, sixty years after that tragic event that also devastatingly affected Castelfiorentino, is brought back to us in the theatrical show “Gli Angeli del Fango. Humans when it rains”, scheduled at the Ridotto of the Teatro del Popolo on Friday, November 20, at 9:00 pm (free admission).
Produced as part of the “Branches” project of the Fondazione Teatro della Toscana e Città Metropolitana, the performance is dedicated to all those who, completely spontaneously, participated with enthusiasm and generosity in the liberation from the mud of houses and cellars, streets and alleys, as well as the providential recovery of works of art, and then books, documents of the National Central Library of Florence, became the symbolic place of this complex rescue operation, carried out in extremely difficult, almost prohibitive conditions.
“We enthusiastically welcomed the idea of proposing this show in Castelfiorentino – underlines the Councilor for Culture, Franco Spina – not only because this municipality was among the hardest hit centers in the entire Empoli Valdelsa area, but also to pay homage to all the Civil Protection volunteers and the many citizens who have always helped in emergency conditions, including the last flood event that affected our territory less than ten years ago, although this is not comparable, even remotely, to the 1966 disaster, thanks to the hydraulic preventive works carried out in recent decades. The mud angels, of yesterday and today, invite us once again to reflect on the fact that solidarity is not just a feeling, but takes on added value when it translates into concrete commitment for the good of the community.”
The theatrical show, by Martina Vionovi (who also directed it), stars Greta Bendinelli, Lorenzo Carcasci, Claudia Faraone, Nadia Saragoni, and Sebastiano Spada. Sets by Federico Biancalani, costumes by Elena Bianchini, lighting design by Samuele Batistoni, music and sound environments by Simone Alessandrini.
