Festival of Hope 1 / 28 April 2020

Baciarsi a Milano Project

World Premiere!

We’ve been astonished when we started to see our city empty. Road with no people, empty squares, streets, churches. All the shops closed. Looking at the images on the breaking news I thought quickly to one of my poems “MILANO” written on 2014. The idea at time when I wrote it was to celebrate the town, to show the any town is beautiful if you have the chance to kiss your lover in every corner. You can stand the queue, the people, the crowd, the traffic jam, all the inconveniences of a city, only taking a break and kiss your lover.   

Now, in time of quarantine, the meaning of this poem changed completely. It is the same poem but in the town nobody is able to embrace and kiss someone else. It is forbidden. So the poem become a wish, a hope. So I asked through a videocall on Instagram and facebook to all my contact to be part of this project of hope, to read the poem to be inspired to shoot some images of Milano. Somebody shot their home, courtyard, somebody the scenes of their all day life, we collected all the videos, composed a music inspired from the images. And then finally, I read the poem with this new supports, making this video poem that’s a collective look on the town. In times of isolation we were able to build something together, even if isolated, we have all been part of a common project, a project of hope.

Paolo Agrati was born in 1974 in May. He mainly deals with poetry, writing, music and pleasantries. He has published the poetry collections: “Ugly Poems” (Edicola Ediciones 2019) “Scores for a farewell” (Musical soundtracks for a farewell) (Edicola Ediciones 2017) a book that includes 13 songs, “Amore & Psycho” (Miraggi Edizioni 2014), “Nobody repairs the route” (La Vita Felice 2012), “When the summer cracks” (Lietocolle 2010) and the booklet “little odyssey” (Pulcinoelefante 2012). He is one of the main Italian Slammer and has always proposed his poetry from the stage, bringing it with the Readings in the most unusual and unconventional places. In the summer of 2014, he participates in the XXIV International Medellin Poetry Festival in Colombia as italian guest. In 2015, he participates in the “Broosistan International art project” by Belgian artists Peleman and Schellekens. In 2016 he translates the book: "Fanon city meu" by the Chilean Mapuche poet Jaime Luis Huenùn and the Booktrailer of “Amore & Psycho” is rewarded with a special mention at the Cortinametraggio, the Short movies’ Festival of the city of Cortina. In May 2017 he is invited at the XXXIII Barcelona Poetry Festival, at the World Slam Cup in Paris and at the Portugal SLAM of Lisbona. In 2018 is invited at the Poefesta, the Festival of Oliva and at the Festival Internacional de Benidorm in Spain. In 2018 found Slam, the first coworking dedicated to publishing and entertainment that aims to develop and spread poetry and literary disciplines related to orality. In 2019 was invited at the “Festival Los Confines” in Honduras and created and run the first TV Show dedicated at The Poetry Slam in Italy. 

He manages and sings in the Spleen Orchestra, “a freak circus dedicated to the Timburtonian imagination”, a successful Italian band that plays and performs the music from Tim Burton’s movies.

Author

Lega Italiana Poetry Slam

L.I.P.S. (Lega Italiana Poetry Slam) is the italian organization that coordinates the poetry slam championship in Italy. 

Born in 2013, LIPS has taken different forms and is happily growing year by year.  

Hundreds of poetry slams are held in the whole country, and every year LIPS organizes a final slam tournament, in wich a champion is proclaimed. The winner will represent Italy in Europe and in the world.

Also cooperating with schools and other cultural associations, the main goal of LIPS is to spread poetry in different environments and audiences.