Pictures At An Exhibition

“Pictures At An Exhibition” was the title of an intensive theatre/performance workshop directed by Rogério Nuno Costa for the Teatro Universitário do Minho (Braga, Portugal), inspired by the namesake music piece by Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881). It gathered a group of performers around the possibility of a self-exposed body performativity within the frame of an exhibition space. The participants were asked to create an individual performance/happening in a close relation to the gallery’s architecture and the art works (paintings, sculptures, photographs, installations, etc.) present there. Above the mere autobiographic response to the main themes, the participants built their own approaches to the idea of self-reflection, perception, sculpted body, live installation and body/space dramaturgy in self-centered manner, yet shareable and extremely playful. The performances happened in many art galleries and cultural spaces in the city of Braga; the spectators were free to create their own path, by using a map of all the performances happening simultaneously in different parts of the city.

Premiere: 30th April & 1st May 2004

Featured venues: Galeria Arte d’Artes, Galeria Belo Belo, Bar Metamorphose, Torre de Menagem, Livraria 100.ª Página, Museu dos Biscainhos, Pedro Remy – cabeleireiro & espaço cultural, Galeria Mário Sequeira, Museu da Imagem and Museu Nogueira da Silva.

Performers: Luís Cardoso, Ana Margarida Correia, Clara Alves de Sousa, Paulo Bessa, Gaspar Machado, Sandra Andrade, João Pedro Costa, Mariposa, Bruno Correia, Fred Costa, Eduarda Ribeiro.

Production: Teatro Universitário do Minho