Ana Rocha & O Cão Danado

“Manual da Falla” gives continuity to the research and creative work Ana Rocha has been carrying out since 2011 concerning the performing nature of language and its potential physical presence. This new play is based on “Hamlet”, by Shakespeare, and “Die Hamletmaschine” [Hamletmachine], by Heiner Müller, which it transforms both in terms of form and language, thus forging a journey through historical frequency on image, desire and the ambiguity between male and female. It is not a formula, but rather an encounter and an enchantment with respect to human affairs and the stripping of patriarchal power. “Manual da Falla” is hence a creation revolting in tear, in failure, in human understanding of matriarchal matrices, and in the theoretical networks on gender, as well as in its more or less significant presence in our daily life. It is mostly about recognising human failure, not as an escape or malfunction, but as the capacity to evolve.


Ana Rocha (Porto, 1982) is a producer, curator, choreographer, performer, playwright and sometimes writer. She studied art history, contemporary art and visual arts in several Portuguese educational institutions. She has worked on the production of several festivals, such as Festival da Fábrica, Alkantara Festival and Serralves em Festa. She was also a member of SOOPA/OOPSA (a non-profit cultural organisation dedicated to experimental music) and Arco da Velha (a non-profit cultural organisation), and is now part of Cão Danado & Cia (a non-profit cultural association dedicated to contemporary theatre). She co-directed MEZZANINE (a non-profit cultural association dedicated to the performing arts) between 2009 and 2017. In February 2017, she premiered “Stabat Mater Furiosa” (Jean-Pierre Simeon), which was staged by Cão Danado & Cia and co-produced by Teatro Municipal do Porto.