The Black Book is a performance based on a book of illustrations called “IL LIBRO NERO” (The Black Book). The book is a collection of illustrations and poems based on the common image of the existence of a black book, in which are transcribed all the unmoral actions committed and the tragic events of ones life, like a sort of personal black register. The Black Book describes the journey of a fictional female character that retraces a series of crucial events through the three main stages of her life: as Child, as a young Woman and as old Woman. The characters and objects of The Black Book are part of a inward- looking world, which manifests itself through constant flashbacks triggered by the memory, that is re-tracing specific events of life and its consequential metamorphosis. As a devised performance from illustrations, the narrative of the Performance doesn’t use any text or dialogues, but a series of “Tableaux Vivant”, derived from a visual interpretation of the illustrations. The process of constructing the sequence of the scenes for the performance is influenced the most by the Film editing technique (decoupage/collage). Each Tableau has the value of a cinematic frame, whose union and overlays can express an emotional and aesthetic design. The narrative structure of the piece, made out of sequences of Frames/Tableaux, together with the variety of illustrations present in the Black Book, allows to experiment and to adapt the performance each time in different shape and duration.
The Black Book
Concept, Design & Direction: Ilaria DI Carlo
Sound Design and Live Music: Gergely Konradi
CHILD: Francesca Chiarello
WOMAN: Ceyda Erdemli
OLD WOMAN: Giuliana Barbaro
MAN: Pietro Nughes
24th-25th July 2008 /4th October 2008 – Cochrane Theatre, London, UK