In the 20th edition of Imaginarius – International Street Theater Festival there are 171 artists (from Brazil, Spain, France, Mexico and Portugal), 14 companies, and 14 projects that take the virtual and face-to-face stage of Santa Maria da Feira, in the district of Aveiro.
Recovering the ‘Myth’ theme – scheduled for the 2020 edition, which, due to the covid-19 pandemic, has not taken place – and adding it to the new ‘Brand’ theme, this year’s edition ends the trilogy started in 2019, dedicated to the theme of ‘Memory’.
Therefore, the festival’s program includes shows from the previous edition, as well as projects resulting from the five public calls launched by the municipality, to which 109 projects applied, of which 11 were selected.
Completely free and free of charge, digital presentations can be accompanied by the interactive map available on the festival’s website, which will cover several emblematic sites along the 213 square kilometers of Santa Maria da Feira.
On Thursday, the festival kicks off with two creations: “Despojos da Torre de Babel”, by Alexandra Couto and Paulo Pimenta, and “O Cubo”, by Elisabete Sousa and Diogo Martins. Visits to the two creations, which can be seen in person until Sunday at Quinta do Castelo, take place from 3:00 pm on Thursday.
At the same time, the show “Ulysses”, which tells the mythical journey back to Ulysses after the Trojan War ended and will be transmitted digitally at the Municipal Library, until Sunday, will take to the online stage.
The first day of Imaginarius also counts, at 17:00, with the exhibition of the ‘making of’ by GodMess, the mural painting that relates the work and involvement of the Feira Volunteer Firefighters corporation with the territory.
On this day, the virtual stage also receives, at 7 pm, the “Sinfonia das Hortas” (at Casa dos Choupos) – a cycle of music that explores the horticultural spaces of the municipality – and “Get Ready” (at Alameda do Tribunal ) – a physical theater and comedy show.
The first day ends with “Subtle Prelude to Humanity”, from SALTO – INTERNACIONAL CIRCUS SCHOOL, which, at 9:00 pm, takes the stage of the auditorium of Cineteatro António Lamoso for “a stark revolution with several artists of different nationalities”.
Also at 9 pm, the short film “Very Very Funny”, by Rui Paixão, André Costa Santos and Mariana Machado, premieres in the auditorium of the Municipal Library. The premiere is followed by a conversation with the creators, and after that moment the short film goes on, at 10 pm, to the digital stage, where it will be shown until Sunday, in Castro de Romariz.
On Friday, Imaginarius’ digital stage will premiere, at 16:00, the play “[Histórias Encaixotadas]”, by Varanda Teatro, at Parque das Ribeiras do Uíma. The play, inspired by artists Oswaldo Goeldi, René Magritte, Pablo Picasso and Tarsila do Amaral, will also be shown on Saturday and Sunday.
The second day of Imaginarius also virtually displays “Risas de Papel”, at 5 pm, at the Paper Museum, “Dandelion or the Theory of Possible Words”, at 6 pm, at Praça Gaspar Moreira, “A Ciegas”, by 10:00 pm, at the Museu Convento dos Loios, and “Poemas com Cheirinho”, at 11:00 pm, at the Santa Maria de Lamas Museum.
During the weekend, the festival also has two workshops: “Tracing a Tangent between Dance and Philosophy”, on Saturday, and “From tragedy to comedy – the masks of the Pantheon”, on Sunday .
