Interview
Julieta Guimarães and Vasco Gomes (Mostra Estufa)
December
2022
Fri
16
On the weekend of December 17th and 18th, a greenhouse will be born again at Teatro Campo Alegre. These are the days of Mostra Estufa, a contemporary circus laboratory by Erva Daninha — co-produced by TMP —, which presents a programme with works by Lia Vilão (“EVOCAR”), Shai Hanaor, María López del Peso and Irit Cahn (“Shelí” ) and Ivo Nicolau (“O que não era para o Manel, nem o Zé comeu, aliás Ninguém comeu”). We talked with Julieta Guimarães and Vasco Gomes, from Erva Daninha, about these five years of Mostra Estufa and the works that we will find out during this weekend.
What balance do you make of these five years of Mostra Estufa?
Julieta Guimarães (JG): It’s super positive. Five years have passed, and I only realized it now. This possibility that TMP had given us has been very rich. Every year, we bring three artists and give them this space for investigation, for error, like a starting point. It has been fundamental! We feel that it has caught the attention of other programmers. There are many projects that are born here and are already continuing outside the project. Others projects turn out to be just an experience, but undoubtedly had an impact in the career of several people who passed through the [Mostra] Estufa.
Vasco Gomes (VG): I think there is also an important mix here in the Estufa concept, both to the circus’ artistic community and to the public. First of all, it’s related to the idea of having close to ideal conditions for germinate outside and grow — the community already knows that there is an annual cycle in which they can present themselves, prepare and risk with their projects. Secondly, it is the fact that it is important for the public, which we realize comes with the desire to see new things, shows that are completely new and experiences of young artists - not only in terms of age, but also in the very freshness of the proposals.
What have you been discovering, adapting in the project, over these five years, particularly in comparison to your first expectations? What do you already have in mind for future editions of the project?
JG: The Mostra Estufa was created from our experience, realizing what our difficulties are. We try to give artists these small comforts, usually the greatest difficulties they have, such as working with other professionals (such as with technicians, producers, etc.). It's not just coming here, being at the theatre during this week and presenting the performance. It’s also about all the support there is during the year. This is one of the things that we have decided to strenghten in the future: not only give financial support, space, presentation time, but also strengthen a series of supports (international protocols, increased funding, time of dedication), to try to make projects grow and tour increasingly prepared. Not just a starting point, but maybe an arrival. Our goal in the future will be more this.
VG: There also has to be — and I can see some evolution there — with the contact and communication with the artists. It's hard to start a work, which often in the circus is something that has a few minutes, two to three minutes. A fugacious thing, super interesting, in which you can see a future, that has a lot to show and say, but very quickly. And realize how we can motivate the artist to create and work. But at the same time, the Estufa does not intend to have closed performances, super difficult and hermetic. And it's very interesting how the communication with artists — and also with the audience — has evolved over the five years. Because it is not easy for a young artist, who is starting (and often the circus has this very tough technical requirements) to combine all this and still create, to be able to tell what he wants. But at the same time, the Estufa continues to have this experimental dimensions. It's a series of performances, the audience comes to see three projects, but there's a place for error and experience. And that was an evolution over these five years.
JG: This year is a curious experience: [Mostra Estufa] almost coincides with Christmas. And there is this association of the circus with Christmas and, in our case, this circus is different from the traditional and classic one, which people are used to associate with Christmas. It's going to be a funny experience in that sense: being so close to Christmas and people looking for the circus, but suddenly there's the offer of a circus that's quite different from the usual.
What can we expect from this fifth edition?
VG: We always try to have a characteristic: Portuguese artists who live, study or work outside Portugal or artists of any nationality, but who live or study here in the territory. This year, we have a very international project, Shelí, by three trapeze artists, two from Israel and one from Spain. They will work on the place of women today, the beauty, the strength of women, in a relation of three bodies with a single trapeze. The trapeze is manipulated live. We see this manipulation. There’s this strong presence, which is very important for the evolution of circus, and have been hidden to create an illusion. Nowadays, verything is revealed to the public, which is part of the game and sees the strings being pulled and how it all works. This project has this very interesting side.
Then we have Lia Vilão, who brings a project about the other side of life, death, cycles, rebirth. Through a very interesting technique, very old in the circus, which has been lost over the years and which, in the last decade, has returned: capillary suspension. It's a technique that was used for many decades, but perhaps stopped for obvious reasons, due to the pain and physical work it requires. But now there is a renewal of this technique, many artists are working with it. And Lia brings us that side. The project is called Evocar, and it is closely related to the lightness and heaviness of existence. It's almost a levitation. She manipulates herself, through capillary suspension.
Finally, we also have Ivo Nicolau. A young artist, who is 20, 21 years old. I’m highlighting his age because it was something we wanted: to try to have not only young projects, but also young artists (in terms of age), fresh out of school. Ivo works as a juggler with a very interesting relationship with the body, movement and physical theatre. He brings a meaningless universe, without logic, full of characters that change, props that seem completely unusual to us and that transport us to memories of stories that we all have. All without any logic. It's the idea behind his project, which has a name that tries to deceive us a little: O que não era para o Manel, nem o Zé comeu, aliás Ninguém comeu [What wasn't for Manel, not even Zé ate, in fact, Nobody ate].
These are the three projects that we will present at the Teatro Campo Alegre Auditorium. In the two breaks, in the transitions of each proposal, we will have video. These are videos captured by Ashleigh Georgiou, who accompanied the last phase of the rehearsals.
What balance do you make of these five years of Mostra Estufa?
Julieta Guimarães (JG): It’s super positive. Five years have passed, and I only realized it now. This possibility that TMP had given us has been very rich. Every year, we bring three artists and give them this space for investigation, for error, like a starting point. It has been fundamental! We feel that it has caught the attention of other programmers. There are many projects that are born here and are already continuing outside the project. Others projects turn out to be just an experience, but undoubtedly had an impact in the career of several people who passed through the [Mostra] Estufa.
Vasco Gomes (VG): I think there is also an important mix here in the Estufa concept, both to the circus’ artistic community and to the public. First of all, it’s related to the idea of having close to ideal conditions for germinate outside and grow — the community already knows that there is an annual cycle in which they can present themselves, prepare and risk with their projects. Secondly, it is the fact that it is important for the public, which we realize comes with the desire to see new things, shows that are completely new and experiences of young artists - not only in terms of age, but also in the very freshness of the proposals.
What have you been discovering, adapting in the project, over these five years, particularly in comparison to your first expectations? What do you already have in mind for future editions of the project?
JG: The Mostra Estufa was created from our experience, realizing what our difficulties are. We try to give artists these small comforts, usually the greatest difficulties they have, such as working with other professionals (such as with technicians, producers, etc.). It's not just coming here, being at the theatre during this week and presenting the performance. It’s also about all the support there is during the year. This is one of the things that we have decided to strenghten in the future: not only give financial support, space, presentation time, but also strengthen a series of supports (international protocols, increased funding, time of dedication), to try to make projects grow and tour increasingly prepared. Not just a starting point, but maybe an arrival. Our goal in the future will be more this.
VG: There also has to be — and I can see some evolution there — with the contact and communication with the artists. It's hard to start a work, which often in the circus is something that has a few minutes, two to three minutes. A fugacious thing, super interesting, in which you can see a future, that has a lot to show and say, but very quickly. And realize how we can motivate the artist to create and work. But at the same time, the Estufa does not intend to have closed performances, super difficult and hermetic. And it's very interesting how the communication with artists — and also with the audience — has evolved over the five years. Because it is not easy for a young artist, who is starting (and often the circus has this very tough technical requirements) to combine all this and still create, to be able to tell what he wants. But at the same time, the Estufa continues to have this experimental dimensions. It's a series of performances, the audience comes to see three projects, but there's a place for error and experience. And that was an evolution over these five years.
JG: This year is a curious experience: [Mostra Estufa] almost coincides with Christmas. And there is this association of the circus with Christmas and, in our case, this circus is different from the traditional and classic one, which people are used to associate with Christmas. It's going to be a funny experience in that sense: being so close to Christmas and people looking for the circus, but suddenly there's the offer of a circus that's quite different from the usual.
What can we expect from this fifth edition?
VG: We always try to have a characteristic: Portuguese artists who live, study or work outside Portugal or artists of any nationality, but who live or study here in the territory. This year, we have a very international project, Shelí, by three trapeze artists, two from Israel and one from Spain. They will work on the place of women today, the beauty, the strength of women, in a relation of three bodies with a single trapeze. The trapeze is manipulated live. We see this manipulation. There’s this strong presence, which is very important for the evolution of circus, and have been hidden to create an illusion. Nowadays, verything is revealed to the public, which is part of the game and sees the strings being pulled and how it all works. This project has this very interesting side.
Then we have Lia Vilão, who brings a project about the other side of life, death, cycles, rebirth. Through a very interesting technique, very old in the circus, which has been lost over the years and which, in the last decade, has returned: capillary suspension. It's a technique that was used for many decades, but perhaps stopped for obvious reasons, due to the pain and physical work it requires. But now there is a renewal of this technique, many artists are working with it. And Lia brings us that side. The project is called Evocar, and it is closely related to the lightness and heaviness of existence. It's almost a levitation. She manipulates herself, through capillary suspension.
Finally, we also have Ivo Nicolau. A young artist, who is 20, 21 years old. I’m highlighting his age because it was something we wanted: to try to have not only young projects, but also young artists (in terms of age), fresh out of school. Ivo works as a juggler with a very interesting relationship with the body, movement and physical theatre. He brings a meaningless universe, without logic, full of characters that change, props that seem completely unusual to us and that transport us to memories of stories that we all have. All without any logic. It's the idea behind his project, which has a name that tries to deceive us a little: O que não era para o Manel, nem o Zé comeu, aliás Ninguém comeu [What wasn't for Manel, not even Zé ate, in fact, Nobody ate].
These are the three projects that we will present at the Teatro Campo Alegre Auditorium. In the two breaks, in the transitions of each proposal, we will have video. These are videos captured by Ashleigh Georgiou, who accompanied the last phase of the rehearsals.
© DR
