Mal – Embriaguez divina
Marlene Monteiro Freitas
2020

In order to explore the varieties of evil, a group turns into a choir on a tribune. They are under the influence of haunting inspirations, poisonous testimonies, bacterial impressions, rotten facts. The title of the evening makes multiple references to the ambiguity of evil. On the one hand, the Portuguese “mal” has no single, direct translation: it can mean unease, sorrow, torment, a lack of something, horror or simply evil. The addition “Embriaguez divina” marks evil as a state of divine delusion – and contrasts it equally with the escapism of boundless ecstasy.
George Bataille places evil and art in close proximity to each other. Even more: art is always evil – the opposite force to a reason that keeps everything under control; the abysm of evil as a prerequisite of art. Perhaps this is why evil appears in a large number of stories as a force that determines action – with the theatre repeatedly being the site where it is revealed.
Choreographer Marlene Monteiro Freitas creates opulent and poetic worlds in her formally strict and detailed performances. She is inspired by mythological motifs and plays with references from high and pop culture, for instance in her works “Of Ivory and Flesh – Statues also suffer” and “Bacantes – Prelude to a purge”.

Choreography | Marlene Monteiro Freitas
Assistance | Lander Patrick
Research | João Francisco Figueira, Martin Valdés-Stauber, Marlene Monteiro Freitas
Performance | Francisco Rolo, Henri “Cookie” Lesguillier, Hsin-Yi Hsiang, Joãozinho da Costa, Kyle Scheurich, Mariana Tembe, Marlene Monteiro Freitas, Miguel Filipe, Tónan Quito
Light design | Yannick Fouassier
Space | Yannick Fouassier, Miguel Figueira, Marlene Monteiro Freitas
Dramaturgy | Martin Valdés-Stauber, Marlene Monteiro Freitas
Sound design | Rui Dâmaso
Technical direction and light operation | João Chicó
Props | Marlene Monteiro Freitas, Flávio Martins
Costumes | Marlene Monteiro Freitas, Marisa Escaleira
Distribution | Key Performance (Stockholm, SE)
Co-production | Biennale de la danse de Lyon 2020 and Pôle européen de création – Ministère de la Culture / Maison de la Danse en soutien à la Biennale de la danse de Lyon 2020 (Lyon, FR); Culturgest (Lisbon, PT); HAU Hebbel am Ufer (Berlin, DE); Kunstenfestivaldesarts (Brussels, BE); International Summer Festival Kampnägel (Hamburg, DE); Künstlerhaus Mousonturm (Frankfurt, DE); Festival d’Automne – Les Spectacles Vivants / Centre Pompidou (Paris, FR); NEXT festival (Eurometropolis Lille, Kortrijk, Tournai & Valenciennes, BE); Ruhrtriennale (Bochum, DE); TANDEM Scène nationale (Douai-Arras, FR); Teatro Municipal do Porto (Porto, PT); Theater Freiburg (Freiburg, DE); Wiener Festwochen (Vienna, AT)
Support | CML Câmara Municipal de Lisboa (Lisbon, PT); Dançando com a Diferença (Funchal, PT); Fabbrica Europa – Performing Arts Research Center (Florença, IT); La Gare – Fabrique des arts en mouvement (Le Relecq-Kerhuon, FR); Pólo Cultural das Gaivotas (Lisboa, PT); Reykjavík Dance Festival (Reykjavík, IC)