Pioggiola (Corsica), special envoy.
In the region of Balagne, nestled in the small village of Pioggiola, A Stazzona, “the forge”, overlooks the Giussani valley. This large Corsican pine cube is one of the two buildings that make up the Association of International Artistic Meetings (Aria). That morning, Friday September 3, whispers surround an expected visit from the Minister of Culture. We hope that the drivers will be able to face the winding mountain roads. Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin celebrates the classification of the Aria among the Cultural Encounter Centers (CRR), a state label aiming to recognize places carrying projects in connection with local communities, at the intersection of artistic dissemination , heritage promotion, education and mediation. The Aria becomes the nineteenth CCR in France and the very first in Corsica.
The project took off in 1998, when comedian and director Robin Renucci, an ardent supporter of popular education, left Paris to live in his native Corsica. That summer, one hundred participants were welcomed in the commune of Olmi-Cappella, for the launch of the International Theater Meetings in Corsica. Since then, the project has remained unchanged, which consists of mixing amateurs, teachers, educators, participants from foreign countries and professional artists to offer an artistic approach open to all, while remaining attentive to what “The professionals present are not like stars in festivals, but fervent carriers of popular education”, insists Robin Renucci. In parallel with its annual festival, the Aria is developing writing and creation residencies, Corsican language workshops and professional training courses. These activities attract more than 300 participants each year.
Rehearsals in the village square
For twenty-three years, the inhabitants of the four communes of Giussani have thus been living in the midst of live performance. Regularly, outings from residence lead them to meet trainees rehearsing in the village square or in a garden. Not to mention the Summer Meetings, which take place largely outdoors. By dint of habit, “The inhabitants have become experts in theater”, laughs Marie-Laure Poveda, director of Aria. Robin Renucci claims this mixing by evoking the Greek theater: “We are not on the model of the bourgeois exit, we are really in a much more popular relationship. The idea is to rediscover the art of living together rather than the simple position of spectator. “ The Aria project extends outside the walls of the theater and aims to irrigate social life throughout the territory.
Stamped “Theater and Nature”, the label awarded that day to the Aria particularly salutes its inclusion in an exceptional environment, within the Corsica Regional Natural Park. “It is recognizing that the natural heritage can also be valued through intellectual and cultural activities, explains Odile Pradem-Faure, general delegate of the CCR association. In an island micro-region of some 300 inhabitants, the Aria has been a considerable vector of change: 14 jobs have been created, between the association and the mixed union dedicated to its management. And the town has been animated, year round, by interns who support the surrounding businesses. Antone Casanova, mayor of Pioggiola and cultural mediator in the association, is one of the faces of this changing rurality. At 28, the youngest mayor of Corsica describes himself as “A child of the Aria”. He says he is proud to see thus rewarded a project which bridges the cultural and social divide, which threatens this landlocked region.
Decentralize cultural activity
At the end of the ceremony, on the floor of A Stazzona, Roselyne Bachelot announced an envelope of one million euros for the development of CCRs. The self-proclaimed minister of “artists and territories” relies on these centers to decentralize cultural activity. In this other part of France, we welcome the recognition of an endogenous initiative. Robin Renucci recalls that Corsica is the only region in France not to have a national dramatic center. For this disciple of Jean Guéhenno, it is impossible to dissociate artistic creation from politics. And the presence of the Minister of Culture does not obscure the absence of national education in the field of artistic education. “You sharpen a child’s ability to act by giving him access to the act of creativity, and the teacher must be the first carrier of the child’s sensitive gaze. Democracy begins here ”, says Renucci. Once the ceremony is over and the room is released, artists and teachers will continue to train together in artistic standards, here, in front of the Giussani mountains.
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