Inside the Argentina theatre, the meeting of the Board of Directors of the Teatro di Roma, the first after days of clashes over governance.
Outside, actors, directors and workers from the world of culture asking to enter, kept at a distance by a police cordon, with the president Francesco Siciliano starting the meeting late so he could go out and confront them.
Scenes from the capital's cultural institution that has been discussing politics and the world of entertainment for days.
Spark was the appointment of Luca De Fusco as general director by the right wing of the Board of Directors and the reaction of the left wing led by mayor Roberto Gualtieri, who saw the Capitol bypassed.
Then the agreement between the institutions: there will be two directors, one 'artistic' and the other 'managerial'.
For the president of the Teatro Francesco Siciliano this is not a downward mediation, but rather claims it as "the choice of the best form for the management and life of a complex organism such as the Teatro di Roma".
And he thanks everyone who made it possible: Municipality, Region, ministry.
However, the situation is complicated by the withdrawal of Ninni Cutaia, already a candidate in pectore for the director's chair.
Position currently formally occupied by De Fusco (he has signed a contract) who however does not have the powers, which are all still in the hands of the Sicilian president.
In the future structure he should have the artistic skills, leaving the organizational ones to a name that doesn't exist at the moment.
Even Paola Macchi, manager of the Due Mondi in Spoleto - she was one of the recurring names in the boatos - would have paraded.
Before the names, however, we need to understand the framework in which to move.
For dual governance, a change of statute will be needed and the process first involves the Assembly of members, which at the moment are only the Municipality and the Region: starting from tomorrow Siciliano will be able to convene it when the parties ask him to do so.
At this point the paths bifurcate: for the Region to amend the statute a council act will be sufficient, while the Municipality will have to make a double passage between the council and the assembly.
Only once the regulatory framework is consolidated will it be possible to fill the managers' boxes.
And it will be clear whether we will fish among the 42 responses to the previous expression of interest that arrived at the Theater or whether there will be a new one, and the screening will start all over again.
Meanwhile today the Board of Directors, at which De Fusco was also present, addressed some more technical but no less fundamental aspects for the life of an institution which manages, in addition to Argentina, also India and Torlonia (and in the future Valle ), starting from the approval of the budget.
A meeting which, however, took place under siege from many operators in the sector, who are very critical of public cultural policies.
After meeting last night at Altraeconomia - Siciliano himself was also there - they met this afternoon at the foot of Argentina.
And they found a cordon of officers: "The police in front of the Theater of Rome protecting themselves from their city and its artists" wrote the writer Christian Raimo, leader of the protest, on social media.
Siciliano, with them, would have defended the merits of the agreement.
He will also do so at the end of the Board of Directors: "Today's meeting and the approval of the budget - he commented - put an end to a harsh phase: we have overcome a difficult moment, in which the lacerations seemed to have had the upper hand. My task is now guarantee the completion of this path and at the same time ensure the best performance of the Theatre's work at the service of Rome and the citizens. I am convinced that, once fully operational, the Rome Theater will be able to ensure balanced and positive management".
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