El Grupo Crono could have picked any play, in any language, from any part of the world, but they picked one of the most challenging titles in the canon: “Waiting for Godot” will present its second and final performance at the National Theater on Sunday evening.
The show has 23 performers, 123 costumes, and should run two and a half hours. If it’s successful, Luciérnaga Producciones may usher in a whole new genre of theater.
In a career spanning three decades, the San José native has become an accomplished poet, playwright, and actress – and she can even deliver a good zinger.
Set in rural Spain in the first part of the 20th century, “Blood Wedding” concerns a love triangle between an unnamed bride, an unnamed groom, and a seductive interloper named Leonardo Felix.
”Corteo” models its costumes and acts on turn-of-the-century Europe. The title is Italian, meaning “procession,” and the atmosphere is a mix of Sicily and vaudeville. Many of the men wear fedoras, suspenders, and seersucker outfits, while the women wear dresses and bloomers. Cirque clowns always have an old-fashioned bag of tricks – props, pratfalls – but the “Corteo” clowns look old-fashioned, like Depression-era hobos. For the moment, Cirque had dropped the “nouveau.” This is the kind of circus your great-grandfather used to see.
When you hear the name “Cirque du Soleil,” you probably don’t think “funeral.” But that is exactly what “Corteo” is about – a funeral. Except that this funeral is for a clown. And the clown is somehow able to watch his own last rites. And it takes place in a carnival tent. And there are lots and lots of acrobats.
“Descent into the Inferno,” playing this weekend at the Butoh Dance Festival, is based on “The Aeneid” by the Roman poet Virgil. In theory, the performance tells the story of the founding of Rome. But under the direction of Fred Herrera, this special Butoh performance promises to disorient and confound the viewer.
This year, William Shakespeare turned 450 years old. To celebrate, Lugiérnaga Producciones is offering a course on how to perform Elizabethan monologues.
