SEEYOUSOUND X DIARY – DAY 1

Alessandro Giura
February 24, 2024

Non possiamo negarlo. It makes quite an impression to see the logo of the tenth edition of Seeyousound lit up on the Mole Antonelliana. A few minutes before the official start of the festival, staff members exchanged smiles and emotional glances, showing on their smartphones the video made from drone footage flown above the Mole. Behind those knowing glances there is satisfaction. A fulfilling moment able to ease the tension of the work done in these months of preparation and that makes one realise what the festival has become over these 10 years. The X designed for this edition, displayed on the symbol of the city. After all, by now everyone knows that in Turin at the end of February there is Seeyousound.

The tenth edition of Seeyousound is the most ambitious, as it should be to celebrate the important birthday of a grown-up festival. It will be the richest edition ever. Also the longest, with the halls of Cinema Massimo occupied for a full 10 days. Certainly not a random number.

For the opening night, Seeyousound’s devoted audience turned up, ready to immerse themselves once again in sounds and images, gradually filling the seats of Sala Cabiria. As usual, Carlo Griseri and Alessandro Battaglini (festival director and deputy director) kicked things off by presenting this year’s first live performance: Lamante.

Lamante is the musical project of Giorgia Pietribiasi, born in 1999, who with her dark voice accompanied by acoustic and electric guitar created a folk atmosphere, intimate in its lyrics and raw in its expression, like Nordic folk. She performed most of her repertoire, such as “Guerra & Pace”, “Rossetto” and “Come volevi essere”, as well as two unreleased songs. Songs about memory and emotions.

Once the performance was over, it was the turn of the film as well. Let The Canary Sing, biopic su Cindy Lauper diretto da Alison Ellwood, opened the screening programme of the Into The Groove section. The director, whose journey to be present in the auditorium took 20 hours, joined Griseri and Battaglini to present the film to the audience, offering a pleasant surprise: a live phone call with Cyndi Lauper. The pop star was thus in some way present at the festival, uttering a nice “Hi everybody! Sorry I’m not there. You know I love Italy”.

The little interlude is as fun and colourful as the documentary. The story of how Cyndi Lauper became a pop icon, without intending to, is flamboyant and precious exactly like her. The film greatly enriches her character. It starts from her childhood and her family to paint the portrait of a dreamy, ambitious woman, determined to express her whole self in art. It is moving to see her genuine determination recounted in turning “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” and “True Colors” into anthems of feminism and of the queer community. Her strength and bold look still burst off the screen today, earning applause at the end of the screening.

Amid emotions, passion and hymns to inclusion, Seeyousound X got off to a great start. But it was only the first of ten days well worth diving into. Here is what is on the programme for Day 2.