The Light in the Piazza

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"Nobody with a dream should come to Italy. No matter how dead and buried you think it is, in Italy, it will rise and walk again" - Margaret Johnson, the mother in The Light in the Piazza. This was her most memorable and striking quote from the theatrical musical, based on the 1960 novella by Elizabeth Spencer.
Victoria Clark as Margaret Johnson (L)
Katie Rose Clarke as Clara Johnson (R)
What are our dreams? And what is their significance to us? And how do they change over time and with our experiences?

 I came to Italy for the sole goal of studying, but my old dreams arose: romance, a trip for my mother and me to visit Tuscany. As soon as they began, life's cruelty crushed them. No more romance, no more dreams - even if that wasn't what I was originally looking for.

 Just like Clara's mother, Margaret Johnson (the musical's protagonist), she felt that her bloom for love had entered winter while her daughter Clara's chance for love was in springtime in Florence, Tuscany. Maybe we are all looking for that light in the piazza - that glow, glimmer of love that makes us believe that anything is possible.

 Sometimes I have wondered if I dreamt too big, was too ambitious, or asked for too much. I was born in the nascent of American political correctness where no one really could tell you what they felt about you. The world was my oyster, and I was ready to take charge.

 But was I ready? Was I adequate enough? Smart enough? Liberal enough? Enough of myself to be sufficient to take chances? Or was this chance not meant for me? Like Clara, I have faced my own personal chances with a disability and navigating the world where you don't always feel "normal".

 Italy - where passion is born and lives out all of its ambitions. Was I too bold in thinking I could come and leave Italy untouched? Only in Italy have the people told me exactly what they think of me in the sense of how they viewed me. For the Italians, people watching is a national pastime and normal thing. Their stares and words told me exactly what they thought about me - the good and the bad, the nice and the ugly. No hidden expressions or gossip behind your back. I am able to see myself in their eyes, not just in mine.

 I came to Italy an American woman with ambition, and I will leave with a better understanding of my strengths and weaknesses - what makes me different from others. I will leave stronger, and yes, I do still believe in love because it exists - it's just rare. Not everyone gets to see The Light in the Piazza.
Location: Bologna, Italy

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