Tragedy in 3 Acts based on Sophocles Oedipus Rex. Premiered in 1960. | Text > Bernardo Santareno | Original theme written by > Carlos Paredes | Stage Director, Set & Costumes Designer > Pedro Ribeiro | Cast > Alda Machado, Barbara Correia, Jose Magalhaes, Maria Tavares, Rafaela Sa, Ricardo Pinho | Light Designer > Pedro Alves (Tulipa) | Sound & Light tec > Francisco Rebelo, Bruno Bernardo | Executive Producer > Isménia Leite | New Production > Quatro Ventos Theatre Company | Sto Tirso PTG
(…) Pedro Ribeiro’s staging, both in the direction of actors, and concerning the main scenographic solutions (the construction of the scenic space is strongly symbolic,using ropes, ropes that lead us to the life of a sailor, but also to the figure of the Moirai/Fates that weave the destiny of human life), shows the ability to concentrate – without hesitation and with rare clarity – at the heart of the complexity of Santareno’s text: the tragedy of doubt. As in Sophocles’ text, António Marinheiro is an exercise in pure theater, a cathartic explosion, and the search for the genuine “pathos”, demanding an absolute physical and emotional surrender. In this CT4V production, this tragic exacerbation happened, always on the razor’s edge, without ever falling into the sentimental exhibitionism that has been destroying the contemporary theatrical experience. To this end, the work of Pedro Ribeiro, the physical, psychological, and emotional construction of the actors contributed a lot, delivering and being committed to the staged madness of tragedy and identity: the human innocence in the face of the inexorability of fate.” > Prof. Eusebio Andre & Prof. Marilia Machado | Audience feedback
(…) From the outset the staging by Pedro Ribeiro makes us realize that there’s something mysterious in the characters(…) Throughout the show, there is a constant and inevitable aura of unsettling blackness. A tragedy that has already happened… but another one that is yet to be revealed…The audience is always looking for the missing piece of the puzzle (…) The cast plays perfectly with this feeling of constant restlessness. Rafaela Sa plays Amalia with a fierce mixture of fury, revolt, and sweet naivete, perfectly consistent with the tribulations that her character goes through. However, the heart of the play is in the dynamics between daughter and mother – Bernarda – played with a “cold moral column” by Alda Machado – an emotionally devastating role due to the way that her actions appear to come from every pore in her body, but always maintaining a stately posture during the entire duration of the show (…) > Paulo R. Silva | Entre Margens Newspaper
