The square is an immense empty expanse, free from any constraint.
It appears to be a square without a soul in the light of day.
The secret is at nighttime, when humans occupy it to unleash their creativity.
The artists perform in front of people who have come from afar to watch, listen and dream of a world that moves, sings and celebrates.
The square becomes drama, poetry, invention and sounds, with magic, jugglers and illusionists.
They are storytellers, acrobats, healers, snake charmers, fortune tellers and Berber players.
There are the dreamed-of encounters of runaway lovers, whispered words, vanished meetings. There are the unfinished dreams when darkness falls.
The square is a stage that changes with the passage of time.
Lovers, after having sipped the last chai, will have their fortunes told before blending into the crowd.
The square empties out, silence returns and everyone follows their own destiny.
I pass the Café Des Épices before being swallowed by darkness, like the last of the illusionists.
“Jemaa el-Fnaa offers all the elements to fly on the wings of the imagination.”
Backstage
Marrakech and its square have always been a dream for me. For one reason or another, I hadn’t had the opportunity to visit this place until a few years ago. I couldn’t believe my eyes that I was finally in the square where Elias Canetti set his novel “The Voices of Marrakech”. The square is an oral and intangible piece of the heritage of humanity, recognized by UNESCO, but above all, it is a square where extravagant characters still gather today. Jemaa el-Fnaa offers all the elements to fly on the wings of the imagination. I spent hours and whole nights observing this place and its people. I shot photos and dreamed of the tales of storytellers and illusionists.
Massimo Bicciato, photographer and traveller.