Diary of My Disasters: a theatre and comic writing project for adolescents in Milan’s public schools
The project
“There is a superpower that allows us to lighten the tangled knot of anxieties, insecurities and discomfort: humour.”
Diary of My Disasters is an educational and theatrical project created by Centro Formazione Supereroi (CFS), a non-profit association of writing professionals founded in 2016 with the mission of promoting writing as a tool for expression and personal growth among young people.
The programme involved around 250 boys and girls aged 14 to 18 from 10 classes in Milan’s public schools.
Through comic writing workshops held from October to May by professionals in comedy and storytelling — including Francesco Arienzo and Veronica Pinelli — the students learned to use self-irony as a creative and relational tool: a way to rework experiences, insecurities and the small and large dramas of everyday life.
The texts produced during the workshops were collected in the volume Survival Manual for Aspiring Adults, distributed on the day of the final performance.
The final performance
On 18 April 2026, the Main Hall of Teatro Franco Parenti hosted the final performance: an event open to the whole city, bringing together theatre, writing and adolescence.
It was concrete proof that humour can become a language for facing the world with lightness, courage and awareness.
Why Fondazione Guido Venosta chose to support this project
At a time when young people are exposed to growing pressures, offering expressive tools such as writing and theatre is a concrete act of care.
The project reaches students from a variety of school contexts, with particular attention to situations of greater vulnerability, making art and culture accessible to those who need it most.
Below are some images from the Liceo Artistico Statale di Brera.
