iolanda andrade

Sunday, 23 June 2013

Modernist Marathon at Teatro Nacional Dona Maria II, Lisbon - The 22nd of June 2013

Under the coordination of João Mota Teatro Nacional Dona Maria II took the initiative of launching a poetry reading marathon within its premises this Sunday, thus freely opening the doors to an audience that initially gathered outside the Theatre to listen to the "Anti-Dantas manifest" by Almada Negreiros before "taking over" the theatre lounge, library, auditorium and the various other Theatre rooms, as well as the lifts and corridors where several actors were reading out the numerous texts, manifestos and letters by a wide range of authors pertaining to the first generation of Modernism in Portugal.

Many city dwellers were taken by surprise as Paula Mora stood in the side veranda of the Theatre reading out the manifest, whilst throwing out its pages as they were being read, which led a passer-by (certainly foreigner taking into account his looks) to collect some of those, I believe, in a rather desperate attempt to work out what was in fact going on.

I would later meet him in one of the noble rooms, as we both took photographs, unaware that those were not allowed.

Fernando Pessoa, Almada Negreiros, Mario de Sa Carneiro and Amadeo de Souza Cardoso are undoubtedly among some of the Portuguese poets I admire, this being one of the reasons as to why I felt I shouldn't miss the opportunity of "revising" some of their texts, though the main reason was the fact that my daughter Mia would be one of the actresses reading out some of Almada Negreiros' prose poems and as always I wanted to be around to "support" her career path.

As I walked into the Theatre and took the lift to one of the upper floors there she was inside it enthusiastically reading one of "assigned" texts completely ignoring who had just walked in.

I continued my "poetry" tour walking around some of the corridors, Sala Estudio, Sala Garret and finally the entrance lounge on my way out.

I don't think I heard them all because without wanting to diminish the importance of rather interesting idea behind this project I am a "slow reader", if I may say so, thus personally felt I needed time to "digest" some of the poems' contents, whether I had heard them before or was listening to them for the first time, which happened twice during the "marathon reading".

I must confess though that it was really worthwhile and I am sure those who "took over" the Theatre must have certainly felt the same ...

Actors, readers and assigned texts:

Paula Mora - "Manifesto Anti-Dantas" by Almada Negreiros

Ricardo Cabaça and Daniela Rosado - "Banqueiro Anarquista" by Fernando Pessoa

Inês Pereira - "Cartas" by Amadeo de Souza Cardoso

Céu Virtuoso - "Intodução" Orpheu

Joana Cotrim "Teatro Arte/ Paris e a Guerra" - interview to Mario de Sa Carneiro and "Tabacaria" by Alvaro Campos

Mirro Pereira - "Violoncelo" by Camilo Pessanha; "Num Bairro moderno" by Cesario Verde, as well as letter from Fernando Pessoa to Camilo Pessanha

Lucia Maria - Fernando Pessoa's expressed ideas; several poems by Ricardo Reis

Maria Amélia Matta - "Afinal a melhor maneira de viajar" and "Ah o crepusculo" by Alvaro Campos

Jorge Albuquerque - "O sencionalista" among others by Bernardo Soares

Margarida Lages - "O suposto Crime de Orpheu" , "Parodias a Orpheu" and "Ha Metafisica bastante" by Alberto Caeiro

José Neves, Manuel Coelho and Simon Frankel - "K4 O Quadrado Azul" by Almada Negreiros

Mia Farr - "Frizos" by Almada Negreiros

Maria Jorge - "Almada falou" by Amadeo de Souza Cardoso and "Olha Daisy" by Alvaro de Campos

Marco Paiva - "Ultimatum Futurista" by Almada Negreiros

Miguel Loureiro - "A cena do Odio" by Almada Negreiros

Sandra Simões - "Sencionalismo (Vida Moderna)" by Fernado Pessoa and "Ultimatum" by Alvaro de Campos

Carla Ruiz - several poems by Mario de Sa Carneiro, as well as letters exchanged between Mario de Sa Carneiro and Fernado Pessoa

Lita Pereira - "Chuva obliqua", "Gato que brincas" and "Autopsicografia", among other - poems by Fernado Pessoa

Vera Azevedo - several poems by Ricardo Reis and Alberto Caeiro

Bernardo Chatillon - interview to Amadeo de Souza Cardoso; letter from Fernando Pessoa to Santa Rita, as well as two poems by Alvaro de Campos

Anaisa Rato - interview to Alberto Caeiro

Albano Jeronimo, Solange Freitas and Miguel Raposo - " A engomadeira" by Almada Negreiros

João Grosso - "Manucure" by Mario de Sa Carneiro

André Pato - " "Aniversario" by Alvaro de Campos; "A criança que ri na rua", "Liberdade" and "Nevoeiro" by Fernando Pessoa

Saturday, 22 June 2013

Last considerations on the short trip to Oviedo ...

I did really enjoy this short trip to Oviedo and feel that had I stayed longer I might have even "explored" some of the neighbouring cities - Gijon and Aviles, which might be as interesting to visit as Oviedo, which I found to be bigger than I had imagined and which clearly exceeded my initial expectations.

Though I only flew back home in the early afternoon of the third day there was no possibility to do anything in the morning due to the fact that the drive to the airport of Asturias would take half an hour, with buses running every hour and the hotel we were staying at was located in the outskirts of the city, yet I was happy enough with the experience and feel I'll go back some other time.

Apart from the odd books I always buy when I travel I bought nothing though I felt tempted to bring back home some local specialities and had it not been the limited weight one is authorised on board low cost flights I would have.

Thursday, 20 June 2013

Oviedo, Asturias (Day 2 - late afternoon cont.) - Museo de Bellas Artes de Asturias - The 15th of June 2013

(...)

From Evaristo Valle

"Adam y Eva" - 1942 (left). "Carnavalada de Oviedo" - 1928

"La Marquesa en el jardin"

From Nicanor Piñole the next three paintings

"El refugio" - 1937 (left). Last portray of my mother - 1951

Portray of Dolores Velazquez-Duro - 1899

Miguel Jadraque -"El estudio de un pintor" - 1876 (left). Raimundo de Madrazo y Garreta - "Mujer en el jardin" (right).

Dionisio Baixeras - "Felicidad" (1886-1888)

Antonio Perez Rubio - "El Carnaval en Madrid" (left) . John Phillip - "La temprana carrera de Murillo" -1865 (right)

Aureliano de Beruete - "Toledo, el arrabal de fuera" - 1901

Pio Escallera - " Lavanderas en el rio" - 1888 (left). Dionisio Fierros -"Pescadores Portugueses" - 1867 (right).

From Juan Martinez Abades the next three paintings

"El Anselmo y el Cifuentes" (left). "Playa de Gijon" - 1887 (right).

"El Rinconin" - 1910

From Luis Mdez. Pidal the next two paintings

"El Lazarillo de Tormes" - 1900 (left). Daughter of the artist - 1926

Jan Fyt - "Diana cazadora" (left). Ignacio Pinazo Camarlench - " Baco niño" - 1879 (right).

Ventura Alvarez Sala - "La promesa" - 1903

From José Uria y Uria the last two paintings

"La vuelta de pin de rosa" - 1906 (left). "Amparo Riu Arguëlles- Meres - 1890 (right).

What a perfect way to finish my very short visit to Oviedo !...

Oviedo, Asturias (Day 2 - late afternoon) - Museo de Bellas Artes de Asturias - the 15th of June 2013

(...)

The Baroque Palace of Velarde which houses the Provincial Museum of Art - Museo de Bellas Artes de Asturias

Museo de Bellas Artes de Asturias where we spent almost two hours houses more than 8.000 artistic works, some of which I photographed. Among them some religious paintings I fell for but also those by Sorolla and other painters of the Spanish School (many of whom I had never heard of, I must confess).

El Greco paintings

José de Ribeira -"Entierro de Cristo" (left). Ramon Sola -"Virgen con el niño" (right).

Fernand Yañez de la Almedina - "Santa Catalina de Alexandria y Santa Margarida de Antioquia" (left). Pieter Claeissen the old - "Santa Ursula con las once mil Virgens" (right).