La Rievocazione Storica di Grassina
Dateline: 02/17/97
Throughout Central and Southern Europe, in centuries past the people would
celebrate Good Friday with a pageant, to thank the Lord for having spared them
from war, famine and disease. In Grassina, a little town outside Florence, the
first processions were held in the early 1700s, and were strictly religious.
However,
the townspeople had a flair for drama and wanted to do more: The procession
became a pageant, with one of the townsmen playing the part of Jesus, carrying
the cross up to Calvary (a hill above the town), while everyone else followed,
playing the part of the throng that accompanied the Savior. The tradition
continued, interrupted only by the World Wars, until the town was devastated by
the great flood of 1966 (the same one that hit Florence).
When the townspeople decided to resume the pageant again in 1983, they rewrote the script. It is now split into two parts: the procession, with Jesus carrying the cross through the town and up the hill, and, atop the hill, a series of skits documenting the pivotal moments of His life, from the Annunciation and Nativity to His baptism, the Raising of Lasarus, and so on. The arrival of the procession from town is timed to coincide with Pilot's washing his hands, and all assist at the Crucifixion.
The
procession through town is made up of about 500 people, all in carefully
researched costumes - you'll see legionaries, Centurions, hangers-on,
courtesans, matrons, bureaucrats, and the participants, including Herod, Pilot,
Mary Magdalen, the Apostles, and many more. The skits are performed by about 80
actors, all local; the dialogues are taken from the gospels, while musical
scores are drawn from a wide range of classical composers. It's a haunting
experience.
Times, getting there, and admission:
The procession begins to wind through Grassina at 9:30 PM on Good Friday, and the skits on the mount begin at about the same time (this means you can see either the procession or the skits; I suggest the latter). Because of the pageant's increasing popularity, the skits are repeated the next night to give all who wish to the opportunity to attend.
Grassina is about a ten-minute drive from Florence -- it's one of the first towns on the Chiantigiana (SS 222), the road from Florence to Siena that winds through the Chianti Classico wine producing region.
Alas, putting on a pageant like this takes more than just time; it's also
expensive. To help cover costs, there is an admission charge: Tickets for the
life of Christ will cost 20,000 or 12,000 Lire, for reserved seats or standing
room, respectively. Tickets for the procession instead cost 5,000 Lire, but do
not include the Passion. All tickets can be purchased from the Box Office (Tel
Italy 55/210.804), or from Universal Turismo (Tel. Italy 55/217241).
What to do the next day? At noon, in Florence there is the Scoppio del
Carro - literally Blowing up the Cart: A cart full of fireworks is set off
between the Baptistery and the Duomo, by a rocket-propelled papier-mâché
dove who travels down a wire from the main altar, and then returns to the altar
(her failure to return is a bad omen). Though brief, it's spectacular.
Have a great time!
Kyle Phillips
