Il Bescanta` and Amapola Theater

Best experienced in on a warm crowded night in Monterosso by following the sounds and  jovial singing, laughing and commotion and seeing  this . . . .

A group of anyone from older men to kids dressed in knee length cut off shorts, plaid shirts, tattered straw hats, faces dirtied by burnt corks with bare feet carrying oars or adorned with ropes and lemon peel wire glasses. This is the Bescanta`. Bescanta` was traditionally done in the period of Carnival between Christmas and Fat Tuesday and their costumes represented the traditional thrown-together costumes of Italian Carnival. Bescanta' began years ago then fell out of practice during the years surrounding WWII. When it picked back up it began being done during the tourist season in order to share the tradition and keep it alive.

Bescanta' and followers beckoning upon Il Pozzo Restuarant.

What the  Bescanta` traditionally did has been called a sort of 'social control,' they were only men in the past dressed as warn down poor fishermen and went  to the window of the wealthy singing  a song in the local dialect Monterossino  inserting the name of whom they are beckoning.  This was a kind of invite for these people to offer up food or wine to have their name crossed off the list in important book carried around by the Bescanta`. In reality there was nothing written in the book , but the idea was that if you gave up some goods to the Bescanta' they would not reveal private and sometimes compromising details about your life or more so your wife's life and actions.  Bescanta` does not beckon private homes anymore, but bars and restaurants who are more than happy to entertain.  Nor do they 'air out' personal  issues, but broad social or political controversies, more a poking fun at the issues surrounding us.

Amapola theatre group are the major promoters of the Bescanta`. Amapola a dialect theater is made of locals form Monterosso, Vernazza, surrounding villages. The writer and director of the is a man from Monterosso and the scripts are predominantly written in Monterosso dialect, depending on the character.  Another peculiarity that sets Amapola apart is that the village doubles as their stage.  In this particular play 'The house of the laughing windows' the actors yelled their squabbles out the window, just as villagers had done once upon a time.  Here the actors colorful lines that poked fun at  tourism, funny characters, Italian politics and different things that may have happened during the flood. Although Dialect is difficult to understand even to some Italians the expressions and gestures of the actors are almost impossible not to understand s they are egged on by the crowd below.

Tribute to the 'mud angels' who all helped us get to where we are today.

The night began with food and wine whose profits will go to the restoration of the oratory and ended in singing and dancing!    

* Much information in regards to Bescanta` and Amapola thanks to the research done by Francesco Bravin for his thesis 'Monterosso fra Turismo e tradizione" 2007