“Wonderful jewel”★★★★★ (NRC)
La codista is a personal piece about identity and the desire to slow down sometimes.
When he lost his job, the Milanese Giovanni Cafaro began waiting in line for others in exchange for money. The actress Marleen Scholten used his story as a basis for her monologue La codista. It turned into a story about waiting in line (‘la coda’), about putting yourself in someone else’s shoes and about the impatience and desire that is a part of waiting. La codista waits her turn together with the audience.
I do not want to be first but rather last. The faster the world moves, the more I slow down. I go against the current. Like salmon. For a ‘codista’, the world is the other way around.
Scholten lives in Italy and for this project she interviewed various Italians about how they experience standing still and what it means. In addition, the actress stood in line for hours, for example at the post office or the tax office, in order to experience for herself the mechanism of waiting. She found chaos and simplicity there, people coming together someplace with only one purpose: waiting their turn.
Scholten was awarded Italy’s Antonio Conti national playwright’s prize for the piece and La codista has been selected by the Toneeljury for the Dutch Theater Festival 2022.
By and with
- Marleen Scholten
Dramaturgy
- Dafne Niglio
Lighting design
- Emanuele Cavalcanti
Costume advice
- Lotte Goos
Photography
- Luca Chiaudano
Production manager
- Acteursgroep Wunderbaum
- Associazione TRAK
coproduction
- Theater Rotterdam
Residence
- OTSE Officine Theatrikes Salento Ellada
in cooperation with
- Embassy and Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
With the support of
- Centro di Residenza della Toscana
- Kilowatt festival
Special thanks to
- Giovanni Cafaro
- Paolo Aniello
- Pietro Valenti
- Paolo Mastromo
- Bas Ernst, Umberto Angelini
- Zona K-Milano
- NTGent
- Liesje Schreuders
German translation
- Andrea Theresia van Dingstee
Upcoming dates
Past dates
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September 2024
16
Capitol Offenbach
(German spoken) -
July 2024
26
Festival Musamadre
Sardinia (IT) -
June 2024
08
Theater Discounter Berlin
-
June 2024
07
Theater Discounter Berlin
-
June 2024
05
Ruhrfestspiele
Recklinghausen -
June 2024
04
Ruhrfestspiele
Recklinghausen -
June 2024
03
Ruhrfestspiele
Recklinghausen -
February 2024
21
Goudse Schouwburg
-
February 2024
09
Teatro Binario
Monza (IT) -
February 2024
08
Grand Theatre
Groningen -
December 2023
05
Stadsschouwburg Utrecht
-
November 2023
19
Trieste (IT)
-
November 2023
18
Trieste (IT)
-
August 2023
17
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
16
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
15
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
13
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
12
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
11
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
10
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
09
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
08
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
06
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
05
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
August 2023
04
Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-
December 2022
04
Casa del Contemporaneo, Sala Assoli
Napels (IT) -
December 2022
03
Casa del Contemporaneo, Sala Assoli
Napels (IT) -
December 2022
02
Casa del Contemporaneo, Teatro Ghirelli
Salerno (IT) -
December 2022
01
Casa del Contemporaneo, Teatro Ghirelli
Salerno (IT) -
November 2022
19
Made In Germany
Stuttgart (DE) -
September 2022
16
Musis Stadstheater
Arnhem -
September 2022
09
ITA/ Nederlands Theaterfestival
Amsterdam -
July 2022
28
Chassé Theater
Breda -
June 2022
04
Frascati
Amsterdam -
June 2022
03
Frascati
Amsterdam (Italiaans met NL boventitels) -
April 2022
30
Monty
Antwerpen (België) -
April 2022
29
Theater a/h Spui
Den Haag, GEANNULEERD -
April 2022
28
Theater a/h Spui
Den Haag -
April 2022
20
Theater Rotterdam
locatie William Boothlaan 8 (Italiaans met NL boventitels) -
April 2022
19
Theater Rotterdam
locatie William Boothlaan 8 -
March 2022
26
Teatro Magro
Mantova (Italië) -
December 2021
18
Theaterhaus Jena
Jena (Duitsland) -
December 2021
17
Theaterhaus Jena
Jena (Duitsland) -
December 2021
16
Theaterhaus Jena
Jena (Duitsland) -
November 2021
13
Theater Rotterdam (Italiaans)
-
November 2021
12
Theater Rotterdam
-
November 2021
11
Theater Rotterdam
-
November 2021
10
Theater Rotterdam
-
October 2021
31
Pesaro (Italië)
-
October 2021
15
Theaterhaus Jena
Jena (Duitsland) -
October 2021
14
Theaterhaus Jena
Jena (Duitsland) -
July 2021
20
Kilowatt Festival
Sansepolcro (Italië) -
June 2021
14
'Holland Festival - Frascati
Amsterdam' -
June 2021
13
'Holland Festival - Frascati
Amsterdam' -
June 2021
01
Triennale Milano
Milaan (Italië) -
May 2021
31
Triennale Milano
Milaan (Italië) -
October 2020
03
FIT festival Lugano
Teatro Foce (Zwitserland) -
August 2020
30
Castrignano de Greci
Puglia (Italië) -
August 2020
29
Castrignano de Greci
Puglia (Italië) -
August 2020
28
Castrignano de Greci
Puglia (Italië)
“Scholten does it exemplarily for an hour: with her beautiful, powerful voice, controlled mimicry and infectious charm, she portrays an unemployed woman who makes a virtue of necessity” (Volkskrant)
“Marleen Scholten is pitch perfect : she delivers her narrative with charm, wit and is a fine story-teller” (Edinburgh Fringe Review 2023)
“Remarkable acting makes all this philosophising feel fascinating and twisty, which is no small feat: in less skilled hands, an hour of waiting would surely feel interminable. A bold gambit from a bold performer, La codista knows that time is money. It doesn’t waste a second.” ★★★★ (The Scotsman)
Current projects
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ALFA -
John & Gena -
A Family Portrait