loredana denicola
the theatre of the mind
... a journey in the exploration of identity, diversity, and and Inclusion through Art...
| digital photography | video -interviews | photography project 2016-ongoing |
the theatre of the mind is a multidisciplinary artistic and social project that blends video interviews, photography, and philosophical reflection to explore the complexity of human identity. Initiated between 2015 and 2016 through spontaneous encounters on the streets of London, it gives voice to individuals who consciously live outside social norms, sharing powerful stories of self-perception and transformation.
At the heart of the project are seven in-depth video interviews, each centred on a protagonist revealing a deeply personal aspect of their life. Lasting between 25 and 50 minutes, these conversations allow for open and honest storytelling. Subjects range from gender identity, crossdressing, and Islamic faith to the experience of wearing the burqa, gender dysphoria, the creation of alter egos, youth violence, the healing power of humour, and the imagination of a seven-year-old girl. These testimonies explore urgent and contemporary issues such as inclusion, diversity, prejudice, LGBTQ+ rights, family, religion, and personal transformation.
Each encounter unfolds over a single day, grounded in mutual trust and genuine presence. In this shared space of vulnerability and openness, essential truths emerge. These quiet, honest exchanges weave a mosaic of voices that gently challenge stereotypes and invite us to reconsider what it means to be human. The project extended beyond the London encounters. Following its first public screening in Brindisi, a second phase was developed with 16 video interviews involving audience members and individuals met in the street aged 13 to 70. These intergenerational testimonies provide valuable insight into the cultural fabric of Southern Italy, enriching the work with broader intercultural and intergenerational perspectives.
The full project includes:
-
21 video interviews
-
A photographic installation
-
7 videos recorded in London (English with Italian subtitles)
-
16 interviews filmed in Brindisi (Italian with English subtitles)
the theatre of the mind invites viewers into a space of empathy, active listening, and critical reflection. It encourages open dialogue in schools, communities, and institutions, while raising awareness of how social and political systems influence our identities. More than just an artwork, it’s a call to openness, awareness, and human connection. It dares us to step outside our comfort zones and ask:
Who are we, really?
Click here to watch selected excerpts from the seven main interviews.
The cross-dresser
what is cross-dressing?
Nobody tried to abuse of you in there?
No, no, I had no troubles when I was in prison. No trouble at all, I felt safe.
That’s quite weird isn’t it, that you felt safe in a prison? Why do you want to dress like a woman?
Because I feel comfortable, I feel it’s me.
I don’t dress to impress other people, I dress for me and I buy what I like. I’ve had people laugh at me in the street, but I don’t mind, because I look at them laughing at me and I think - Well, I put a smile to your face!
What’s your sexual orientation?
Bisexual. I am not more on one way than the other. To be crude, I like vagina as much as I like cock. I have no preference.
I am completely bisexual.
That’s the best option I think ...
If I am with a girl I enjoy that, and if I’m with a man, I enjoy it equally.
I choose my religion, Islam
what is Islam? what does it teach?
Why do you wear a burka? Why is it black?
In Islam it doesn’t say you have to wear black. You can wear any colour. The reason I wear it , it’s more modest, and it is a barrier between me and the outside world and the sins that are there. So if I wear it I feel like I’m shielded from the corruption of the outside world and it’s a form of modesty, so, like, men don’t see your appearance, they don’t see your figure … The only reason we wear black is out of convenience, because we can wear different colours, there is no restriction on that.
Why hair are considered attractive in Islam, and why not feet, hands or faces?
Faces and hair are both considered attraction because is the first thing you notice when you see a person. When you look at the face, you judge that person, you look at that person, you don’t always see the feet first, it’s the face you see first and that is why we cover our face.
MADKILLERMILLER, an unimportant person with a business card
why are we looking for troubles?
May I ask, how was your childhood?
It was a bit rough, from what I could remember. I can vaguely remember my real dad. Then he disappeared for some reason. My mum had multiple sclerosis, she can’t walk. It wasn’t that bad at first. My sister, she was living with her dad, a different dad to mine. So for several years it was just me and my mum, and I’m a little, and she’s disabled. So it was kind of looking after each other. And then she met one of her old flames from Ireland. My mum is Irish and she started dating him. Then she got married, so he became a stepdad. They had a kid together, my little brother, and then my stepdad turned really violent and nasty and started beating me and my mum. So I ended up in care, foster homes.
Then, I met a crowd of friends, ended up getting in legal troubles with them, like, all sort of stuff, mainly like stealing cars, then prison a few times.
Finally I am a woman!
what is gender dysphoria?
What is the difference between sex and gender?
Oh, big difference. People automatically assume that your gender would determine your sexuality, and because I went from man to woman, people assume I would be interested in men. Whereas truthfully, my sexuality hasn’t changed, and I would now be classified as a ‘lesbian’.
What is transgender and why are they called transgender?
‘Trans’ implies switching, changing over, that’s where the trans word comes from, obviously. So, transgender - switching gender. Ninety-five per cent of the time, what it means to be transgender is the person feels that they were born with the wrong outward appearance. In my case I grew up, developing through puberty, as a boy but I never felt that I was that boy. And then I tried to live as a man. One of my partners considered that as an excuse for infidelity, because I wasn’t man enough. My answer to that one is that I never was a man.
LOUIS GREY MAGUS is my alter ego
why do we build an alter ego?
One of the reasons why I turned into fetish and to being dominated — in my normal life not only was I a victim in my younger life, but also, let’s just say I wasn’t nice towards certain individuals. To be submissive and to be punished, it was a kind of a penance. I have inflicted pain so, why shouldn’t it be that I receive pain as well?
Do you enjoy pain? What does mean to be fetish?
To be fetish … they are behaviour patterns which are not considered normal in society. Like, you don’t go to the end in the street and say, ‘Hey stay still, I am going to tie you up, and blindfold you and leave you on the side on the road’. Fetish is based on consensual behaviour between two adults who are able to reason and to fully understand the scenario. Trust and respect has to be a key element.
In the fetish and BDSM world, you need to build foundation of knowledge of one another, your boundaries, what things you’re into, things you’re not into or your pain barriers. Some can endure severe pain, whereas others can only endure a lower level. Personal safety is paramount. If a scenario is happening that goes beyond a barrier, then rather than say, ‘Stop! Stop! Stop!’, you establish a conduct code.
I am my emotions ...
what is a performance?
Is there any political, sexual message in what you do?
I think for society in general, it is not normal what I do. But I am a ‘normal’ person. If you respect other people I don’t understand why they shouldn’t respect you. If you are not offensive towards anybody, you don’t rub your ass in anybody face, I don’t see why people would come and be offended by you. If a woman wears high heels, there is no scandal about it, what is the scandal about? It’s because the man wears high heels or they shouldn’t wear high heels? Are the high heels wrong or because a man behaves like a woman? Is dressing up like. a woman a bad thing? What is the problem? We grew up with the idea that women can wear high heels or beautiful dresses. But if a man like me does, what is the problem? Is because the dress is wrong or it is because the man is behaving like a woman? Because I am not a drag queen, some people who don’t know much about these different worlds, they don’t look at me. They are scared, they avoid me, because I look like a man, I have a beard as you can see, but I can see as well from the tail of my eye that they instead look at my back, my low back and my long legs, because I have long legs.
The imaginary dogs
who is a child?
I have an imaginary dog.
What?
Imaginary dog.
What do you mean? An imaginary dog?
Yes.
What is his name?
Buster
Is he a colourful dog? What is his colour?
He is black and white.
Does he talk? What does he say?
He speaks like humans. He says what human say.
Like what?
If I ask him something he would speak like human.
Ok tell me what do you normally ask to this dog?
‘What shall we do? Shall we talk to that person again because you have been rude to me, or we just leave her?’. And he just answers.
And what does he say? Does he give you good advice?
Yes he does.
Like what, for example?
He always changes, and has his own mind, I don’t know, I can’t read minds.
Is he with you every day?
He is right here now.