M:

My turn to get things started.

After our night at the theatre last night, what could have been more appropriate than getting back to the origins of things by visiting Taormina, renowned for its Greek and Roman theatres and spectacular views. The weather looked like a good each way bet, so we wandered down to the bus terminal (note the singular) and bought our tickets for the ETNA bus, andate e ritorno (return) for E7.70 to Taormina. We had left time for breakfast at a nearby cafe and even asked what number the bus went from - 9.

After we had eaten we stood around bay 9 and little was happening. It was getting closer and closer to the departure time when a taxi driver asked us if we wanted a cab. No grazie. A dove andate? A Taormina. Ma questo bus non parte da qui. Si devono andare di la.

You guessed it, even though the ticket office was here, the bus went from there! Only a short distance away, but if you'll pardon the pun, it could have been terminal.

As the bus was late we made it easily and had a comfortable hour's trip along the coast to Taormina. For background, you can go to that site of impeccable academic standing - wikipedia. The best part of the trip was the bus climbing up along a series of hairpin bends from sea level to the township above. (A: at one point our bus met another one coming the other way- talk about Robin Hood and Friar Tuck not giving way on a log crossing the river! I held my breath but the other driver backed up. I am in awe of their skill!) Even having arrived here, if you looked up you could see buildings perched on the hillsides even further on.

We quickly oriented ourselves, and walked past the scores of tourist traps to the Tourist Information office. The place was larger and more colourful than its Catanian counterpart, but the single staff member had obviously been to the same school of studied disinterest as her colleague. We got the map we came for, and headed off along the main drag. Not for Taormina the traffic, the litter, and the graffiti - this was Italy after a bath. The trouble was it felt a bit plastic. (I know - I am never happy!).

We visited the Roman theatre - a warm up for the main event. This smaller theatre sits in among modern buildings (less than 300 years old!) which look over and into its semicircular structure with the same nonchalance we had noted in Catania. Even the newer structures are older than European presence in Australia.

We walked out to the lookout past the Duomo along Corso Umberto I (spectacular views down to the ocean), then came back to the Duomo to see the crowd applaud the exit of a coffin from the church. From the presence of carabinieri (or maybe guardie or polizie) this was someone important.

Next stop was the so called Greek theatre (in fact Roman but built on a Greek theatre) which is one of the most stunning amphitheatres I have seen - and I think one of the largest. It nestles into the hillside so that when you look down on the stage you can look straight through to the ocean. There are a few pictures to have a look at.

For lunch we abandoned the more touristed area and got a couple of panini from a little shop near the Communal Gardens - with their own interesting structures, memorials and views - as well as shelter when the rain which had been threatening finally arrived.

Back to the bus terminal. This time no confusion about which bus. The plan was to get back to Catania and then to get in touch with the puppet people. I forgot to mention they had emailed back to let us know we were welcome to come and watch them set up and rehearse at the puppet theatre - again at the Ciminiere (near the terminal), and scheduled for 4 which would give us time for a coffee before we went across. It took some time to find the theatre, and I had received no reply to my first text. When I sent a second, our host, Davide Napoli apologised and said they would be an hour as they had to organise a truck to carry everything due to the rain.

We headed back to the apartment, had a short rest, then walked back (just over 20 minutes each way), arriving just as they were unloading the gear from the truck. This was to be the beginning of a magical experience.

Right from the start we were made to feel a part of what was going on We helped unload the truck - each puppet in its own bag to be hung from special rails backstage. But first, the theatre - purpose built for this particular Catanese school of puppetry during the refurbishment of Le Ciminiere, it is a lttle jewel, all in scale to present puppets in their best light. Davide spoke no English - like the rest of the crew, with the exception of the sound and light guy - an uncle. Yes this is a family concern, and has been for four generations, founded by Davide's great grandfather. This evening there were three genrations present, and active, including the 87 year old Nonna- Italia Chiesa Napoli (Italy Church Naples - quite a name!) - who does some of the voices. You can find out more about the company here - it's in Italian but you can get Google to translate - or just look at the pictures.

The puppets were marvellous - from the carved heads to the detailed costumes. These ones were all from the stories about Guerrin Mescino. We didn't quite get to the bottom of the stories based on the short extracts we saw in rehearsal. However, there are some clips here. (And the woman's voice at the start is Italia Chiesa!

Nonna took a shine to Anne and they engaged in some woman to woman conversations, although given Nonna had no English and Anne had limited (but growing) Italian,they got along famously. I'll let her describe the encounter.

A: Nonna was very happy to chat and I kept up a fractured conversation as best I could but it is amazing how much can be communicated this way. She was proud to explain that her father had started the business and that three of her sons and now three of the next generation including Davide, his brother Marco who welcomed us warmly, and a third brother Dario are all part of the family troupe. She told me that she had been to several cities in the USA and also to Taiwan and then Mick told me later that Davide had told him that this is where they had been on tour so it all made more sense. (M: Note to my Italo Australian friends - surely there would be funding of some kind to get them to Oz?)

During our discussion which took place in the comfortable seats of the theatre itself while the family was backstage (except for Marco who was up a ladder in front of us sorting out the lighting) there was a call for Nonna. "Un momento per favore" she said to me and went back stage. Next thing we could hear her voice as she read through a part of the show's dialogue for a sound check, which had to be done of course with checks of the music as well. (The sound system had not been used for some time as they are allowed to use this theatre, set up for puppets, only a few times per year, due to local politics.) Nonna's voice was of someone who had done this many times and she was saying something very dramatic and frightening- she did it well. The puppets have been her life and that of her creative and very generous family for several generations.

M:

Backstage was where the action was. Props were being repainted. Sound and lights checked and set. Puppets adjusted. Moves rehearsed - and in the midst of it all Davide kept finding time to talk to us, even to posing for pictures and letting us have a go with the puppets. We kept trying to stay out of the way and he kept inviting us in! Not once did we ever feel that we were in the way and in fact Davide's passion seemed to drive him to spread the good news.

The puppets themselves were not like the usual string marionettes. Each is held by a rigid steel rod from the top of the head, which allows the puppeteer to turn the head and the puppet as a whole. There is a string connected to one arm, and a rod to the other. These two seem to be held in the same hand. There are no strings to the feet, so the impression of walking is created by the movement of the puppet as a whole using the "head" rod. If that sounds easy you should try it. If you have looked at the clips, you'll get a sense of the style.

After a couple of hours we decided not to overstay our welcome, so to top off a great day of walking we walked back to the flat, stopping only at Il Golosone for another delicious pizza. We were (almost) too tired to eat them, and fell into bed leaving the packing to the new day.