Andrée Ruth Shammah

A background of rising fascism in Venice in 1930s. A music-student, Matthias, mixes with the town's bourgeoisie and falls in love with a mature teacher, Carla, the mother of his friend Renato, and then with his young colleague, Elena.

On the fiftieth anniversary of Milan's Franco Parenti Theatre, co-founder Andrée Ruth Shammah leads a journey through its history, memories and enduring creative spirit. Through archival footage, fragments of landmark productions and the voices of actors, directors and artists who have inhabited its stage, the film retraces five decades of theatre, friendship and artistic experimentation, bringing together the “scarrozzanti” of the present and the “spiritelli” whose presence still seems to live within the theatre's walls.

This documentary explores the phenomenon behind Chi come me, a hit theatrical production directed by Andrée Ruth Shammah and written by Roy Chen. Following its final sold-out run at Milan's Teatro Franco Parenti, the film examines how a powerful story about five fragile teenagers in a mental health center finding their voice through theater transformed into an intergenerational cult experience and a profound mirror of contemporary adolescent struggles.