During this mobility, the desire arose to work on the creation of a joint project between these two CCRs, a project that came to fruition during the final festivities linked to the 700th anniversary of the Chartreuse de Neuville on 3 and 4 October last. Find out what Nathalie Mentha, artistic director of the Théâtre Potlach and actress, and Pia Galloro, deputy artistic and cultural director of the Chartreuse de Neuville, have to say about the experience.

Pia Galloro ‘Thanks to its CCR label, the Chartreuse de Neuville team was able to take part in a discovery trip to Fara Sabina in Italy in January 2024, where they met the team from Teatro Potlach and its director, Pino di Buduo. This theatrical science centre is located near Rome and develops projects based on research, training and experimentation. It is within this framework that director Pino Di Buduo is developing an artistic project on the theme of the city, inspired by Italo Calvino's novel Le città invisibili (The Invisible Cities). The novel compiles descriptions of fifty-five imaginary cities described by Marco Polo to the emperor Kubilai Khan.

And so, one thing leading to another, the project for a grand finale to mark the 700th anniversary of the Chartreuse de Neuville was born. La Città invisibile was, as we had dreamed, a fabulous allegory of the history and contemporary mission of the Chartreuse de Neuville: to work towards a society in which everyone cultivates a connection with themselves, with others and with the world, dares to be enterprising and contributes to the future.

A great deal of research has been carried out to combine the memory and identity of the Chartreuse with the spirit of this novel, and to bring to fruition a participatory artistic project. The artists have taken possession of the site, its archives, its architecture, the music that has passed through it (from Gregorian chant to Gabriel Fauré, who stayed there when it was an artists' phalanstery between 1908 and 1912), and the contemporary mission that has been underway since 2008.

In April, June and September, several members of Teatro Potlach, Pino di Buduo, Nathalie Mentha and Zsofia Guylias, spent time in residence at the site, where they met with a number of amateur artists from the area to work with them on the grand finale. 78 local artists came up with short live shows, each in their own discipline; the Italian artists created sets, music, sound and visual effects, theatre, etc. 18 actors, technicians and coordinators from Teatro Potlach then set up on the site from 23 September to create a sprawling set for the grand finale of the 700th anniversary, with projections, music, balloons, etc.

Over the course of two evenings, nearly 700 people marvelled at this rich, poetic and surprising collaboration as they discovered the Chartreuse de Neuville anew.

Nathalie Mentha ‘It all started with the needs of our partner, a festival director, a foundation or a CCR, who saw our “Invisible Cities” project as an opportunity. An opportunity to celebrate an important event in a different way, a way to change something... for example, the chance to connect the monument where our partner lives and works, with the people who live around that monument... and those who live nearby.

The montage is a process of inspiration, of historical research into the tangible and intangible heritage of the site, of listening to the space and architecture with which the place we are going to artistically reveal is built. It's a big weave, a transformation of everyday space that takes 15 days to build, in teams, one working during the day and the other at night.

In Europe, we generally start 6 to 8 months before the performance date. With the partner, we organise at least two trips to explore the site and meetings with local associations. Finally, the final construction of the ‘invisible cities’ takes a fortnight.

Our experience at La Chartreuse was truly amazing in terms of the commitment with which the two teams worked together. The CCR Chartreuse de Neuville and the CCR Théâtre Potlach, the Italians and the French! The aim was the same: to put everyone in the best possible working conditions, to understand how to solve problems and how to work together. To help each other when one of the two teams was in difficulty. Talking, exchanging ideas and solving problems so that the project could be completed to the required quality. A challenge shared by both CCRs.

This initiative gave rise to a large-scale artistic project involving more than 70 local talents from a variety of artistic disciplines - and it was a real success!’