“For me it was a sort of rebirth on an artistic level, after so many years. Finding myself on stage, in this project which is something unique and I hope it doesn’t remain so but there is a multiplier effect… A very strong emotion, I hadn’t felt it since my debut with Shakespeare in Rome. A second first time when we were at the Teatro della Pergola in Florence last November”, says Ernesto Luongo with a pathos that he does nothing to hide. Originally from the province of Potenza, 39 years old, he is now free. He paid the bill with the law. “I began my theater career in Rome in 2006, but it ended due to the crime that landed me in Siena prison after many years. In the meantime I had reinvented myself, doing other jobs. I have been free since July 11th, entering Santo Spirito in April 2024”, explains one of the two vocalists of ‘CellaMusica’ who also takes care of the Instagram page. “It was like being reborn, a new baptism”, this is how he defines the performance on the Florentine stage. “The ones inside the prison? Another type of emotion. More the desire for redemption, to demonstrate to the educators or in any case to those who lived with me inside what I could do”, says Luongo. Who now works as a handyman in a baseball field in the province of Arezzo.
What did the project represent for you?
“When I entered I tried to take part in the workshops straight away. I needed to discharge the negative energy that fills you up while in prison. In reality it was a difficult thing because being in this different dimension is not easy. Being able to manage as a prisoner a relationship with a figure from the prison police but also with a volunteer who comes from outside… you don’t know how to behave, you don’t know the limits”.
Were you wary at first?
“Exactly. Not because I wanted to be distant but for fear of doing something wrong. In everyday life I am very outgoing. I have difficulty keeping my distance, especially when I do something positive that fills my heart. An example? When introducing ourselves on stage I called everyone by name but him (indicates Battista, ed.) by surname”.
Can we say that today he is a friend? Has a beautiful human relationship been born?
“Yes (he says without hesitation and Battista for his part nods, ed.)”.
How did you overcome the barrier with him?
“When I saw this project as a mosaic made up of different pieces that together form something unique. And above all in continuous evolution. Now I’ve left, tomorrow others, maybe I’ll give way to others. The heart of ‘Cellamusica’ is there. We are the megaphone”.
The song that best describes Luongo?
“‘Melancholic Spectator’, I wrote it. A romantic song that talks about a love that isn’t going well. The memories and happy thoughts linked to it kept me afloat. I told the school kids who came that no artificial intelligence will ever be able to surpass our artisanal intelligence. Imagination is what can often save us, especially in those places. And then I care a lot about a song by Ligabue, ‘A modo tuo’, which talks about the relationship between parents and children which is difficult for a prisoner. My family was so close to me.”
What do you say about this project?
“Very happy. They have always supported me in my artistic follies.”
Is there anyone you need to say thank you to?
“Many. Aside from the members of the group, Dr Massafra, the entire educational area. If the inmates find the courage to overcome the negative period and come out better it is thanks to them. Then thanks to all those who work at Santo Spirito. The great fear when you enter is not to find the people who were close to you outside. Instead I was lucky enough, perhaps because I was there for a short time, perhaps because I am a different person, to find them all. Indeed, more. If by the time you leave the worst is over, true, However, you are often not seen well by society. The first day out of Santo Spirito I went to the shopping centre, I felt like they were being watched, but they didn’t know who I was.”
What would you say to other prisoners about ‘CellaMusica’
“To come together with all the energy possible, to continue making records and move forward. We who are outside need it too.”
Laura Valdesi
