Silent disco performance transforms Rome pharmacy signs into nightclub lights

On September 10-11, 2021, the Esquilino district of Rome will host 'Via Crucis,' a silent disco performance where participants dance under the flashing cruciform signs of local pharmacies. Conceived by Fabrizio Federici as part of the URMA project by Maral Kekejian, a resident fellow at the RAER – Reale Accademia di Spagna, the event features DJs Eva Geist, Hugo Sánchez y Juanito Jones. Organizers note that the electronic frenzy of pharmacy signs distances them from their original purpose—places entered silently for help—and instead evokes the lasers and spotlights of nightclubs, suggesting that the need to feel better is common to both spaces. The performance aims to rethink public space and reclaim it after lockdowns, despite its provocative appearance. Meeting point is Fontana del Giardino di Piazza Vittorio at 10 PM.