In May, the D. Maria II National Theatre's programme continues to be divided between two lines of programming. With the Odisseia Nacional [National Odissey], the theatre continues to reach various municipalities in Portugal with shows for the most diverse audiences. In Lisbon, the Abril Abriu [April Opened] cycle continues, dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the revolution that brought freedom and democracy to the country.
In 2023, during the Atos programme, part of the project Odisseia Nacional, various artistic teams toured the different regions of the country and developed artistic participation projects with the communities of several municipalities. These stays and projects fuelled the creation of shows that are now being presented in the localities where the projects were developed, thus giving back to the participating communities an artistic object to which they contributed. This is the case with Diário de uma República II and Terminal (O Estado do Mundo), by the companies Amarelo Silvestre and Formiga Atómica.
Just like in 2023, the show Falas Estranhês?, aimed at children, continues to tour kindergartens from north to south of Portugal, with a playful proposal about tolerance and the importance of communication.
Premiered in the Abril Abriu cycle, the creation Quis saber quem sou - um concerto teatral, by Pedro Penim, artistic director of the D. Maria II National Theatre, is now travelling to other cities, such as Porto or Loulé, as part of the National Odyssey. It’s theatrical concert that revisits popular protest songs from the 20th century and 21st century, intertwining the music with the history of the Carnation Revolution.
In Lisbon, the Abril Abriu cycle is still running, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution.
Presented at the Sala Garrett in 2022, a few months before the Rossio building closed for renovation work, Pedro Penim's Casa Portuguesa is back in Lisbon as part of this cycle. A creation that draws on the war diary, the fado that gives the show its title (a composition that most of the population in Portugal knows by heart) and the philosophical essay Filosofia della Casa, by Emanuele Coccia, to talk about the still open wound of the colonial war and the reconfiguration of the family unit.
After travelling through ten of the country's municipalities with the National Odyssey, passing through the North, Centre, South and Islands, the exhibition Quem és tu? – um teatro nacional a olhar para o país [Who are you? - a national theatre looking at the country], curated by Tiago Bartolomeu Costa, arrives in Lisbon. The exhibition shows a period in the history of the D. Maria II theatre, drawing parallels with the political and social reality of the country at the time. The stay in Lisbon also marks the launch of the publication dedicated to this exhibition.
This month, still as part of the Abril Abriu cycle, will see the premiere of the shows POPULAR, by Sara Inês Gigante; Ensaio para uma Cartografia, by Mónica Calle; and Na hora dos cães, a text by Ana Carreira directed by Nuno Cardoso, and integrated in the European project NÓS/NOUS.
Photo: Filipe Ferreira
