The project is part of a program sponsored by the Teatro di Roma [Theatre of Rome], the association "Liberti Nantes" and the Italian branch of the Amref Health Africa organisation, among other Italian organisations working for migrant rights. The project is also partly funded by the Italian Culture Ministry as part of its "Migrarti" grant to promote cultural integration through art, theatre and film. Workshops and performances on a traveling stage The organisers of "Aeneas on the Road" said their programme is an "artistic and cultural intervention project" in areas where relationships between locals and migrants are fraught with tension. "The aim is to dig deep into the theme of voyage by retelling the myth of Aeneas and putting it into context through an integrated theatre experience," they said. The project is made up of three phases. In the first phase, from April to May, 14 student actors from the Theatre of Rome's acting school and 15 young migrants from the Liberi Nantes association will hold eight sessions for migrants, actors, local residents and schools. In the second phase, to take place in June, a travelling stage will host nine days of performances and workshops in towns on the Roman outskirts, including Tor Bella Monaca, Quarticciolo and Pietralata. In third and final phase of the project, on July 9, local Roman residents will be invited on stage at the Teatro Argentina theatre in Rome's historic centre for a collective performance with over 200 people on stage. Theatre as a way to reflect on migration Emanuela Giordano, the director leading the initiative's activities, said the idea was to use myth and epic poetry as catalysts for looking at the modern world. "These are two languages that tell the story of man's fate: escape, finding oneself, and rebuilding," she added. "Aeneas is Rome's founding myth," she said. "He was Turkish, had fled from far away and was looking for peace. We have to keep this in mind." Giordano said people must discuss outside theater as well, to "face daily and contemporary reality". She said the project was experimental, in some ways also risky, but necessary. "The hope is to build relationships," she said. "If you don't take on projects for relating and getting to know people, it's useless to keep people closed up in buildings, in neighbourhoods where people are afraid of each other. Even theater should be a way to promote reflection on migration," she argued.

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