Alessandro Serra, "The Tempest", press conference of the 16 July 2022

On a wooden trestle, a black veil covers a body, like a layer of dark oil… which suddenly rises. We’re underwater, with the sprite Ariel, as the tempest rocks the surface. With this first image, the stage is set: through this simple yet spectacular artifice, we are thrown into another world, beyond the veil of appearances—in the depths of William Shakespeare’s text. After his powerful Macbettu, performed in Sardinian, Italian director Alessandro Serra and his company Teatropersona offer us a new adaptation of The Tempest, sticking closely to Shakespeare’s dramaturgy. There unfolds the political dimension of the play. But the ultimate power remains that of theatre. Prospero’s magic is that of a director expert in trickery… and The Tempest is an homage to theatre—through the means of theatre.