ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores cities’ cultural stakes, especially as explored in literature and performance. From Plato to Sigmund Freud to Solnit, the city has appeared as a microcosm for civilization, a macrocosm for the individual, and a nexus of mysterious desires threading layers of public and private memory. The book discusses urban spaces from the perspective of a traveller, writer, and creator of theatre. It is about the unseen city, the hidden city—as experienced in transit, imagined in literature, and invoked through performance. The book offers a close-up look at Teatro Potlach’s eponymous performance based on Calvino’s novel staged in dozens of cities internationally, from Mazatlan to Tehran. It considers the stakes and intercultural dynamics of Di Buduo’s dramaturgy as city streets turn inside out, showing culture and labour normally obscured by architecture and habit.
