Having stepped aside three years ago from the scene of microtheater in Guayaquil, jamie tamariz returns to the stage to direct new plays in short format. This time he does it for the initiative the sceneof North American Ecuadorian Centerone of the strongest cultural activities of said binational institution that is being reactivated notably after the pandemic. It’s about a new cycle of micro theater in English, which opens this wednesday july 13.
Tamariz is certainly one of the pioneers of short theater in the city, when 2014 opened its first room for this purpose in mirafloresthen it expanded to other scenarios, such as the cultural space called The bootin it Salado boardwalk. But after 5 years of continuous work, he says, he wanted to try new media and spaces.
“From the 2019 I went to work at ecuavisa as director of talent development and I have dedicated myself to knowing and experimenting in the audiovisual industry. I made a Master’s Degree in Film and Television Production in it Madrid Film Institute and I have many projects in that area”, says the actor and producer.
Jaime Tamariz: Art is not a whim, art is necessary
With the works of the great Tennessee Williams
“It is one of the initiatives that is most welcomed by our audience, since it is a great tool to create bridges between both cultures, promoting not only the practice of the English language but also a taste for the performing arts”, he highlights about The Scene consuelo hidalgoCultural Director of CEN.
The new cycle brings a selection of four works by tennessee williamsauthor from southern USA and one of the foremost playwrights of the American theater of the 20th century. The functions will be from July 13 until the August 31in it Paulsen study (The miseries). There will be two presentations per day, at 20:00 Y 21:00. Access to all will be free.
The first work is The Lady of Larkspur Lotion (The Marquise of Larkspur Lotion), on billboards July 13 and 20; With the performance of Marina Salvarezza, Rocío Maruri and Alejandro Fajardo. It tells the story of Mrs. Hardwicke-Moore, a longtime tenant in a cockroach-infested boarding house, who lives convinced that she owns a rubber plantation in Brazil.
At the CEN: Microteatro in one, two and three!
The second piece is second work, The Glass Menagerie (the glass zoo), available on July 27 and August 3. With the participation of Elena Gui and Sebastian Perdomo. Follow the story of Tom, a poet who works in a warehouse, but who wants to live adventures and escape the overprotectiveness of his suffocating mother.
The third work is Cat on the Hot Tin Roof (The cat on the hot roof), in marquee the August 10 and 17. Award-winning playwriting Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1955 will star in this adaptation by Mare Cevallos and Carlos Scavone. They interpret the conflicts of an apparently ideal couple, but with unspeakable secrets.
Finally, the last work in the cycle is the renowned A Streetcar Named Desire (A Streetcar Named Desire), available on August 24 and 31. With the protagonists of Ana Passerilike the prim and arrogant Blanche Dubois, coming from a rancid and ruined southern family; Y daniel santoslike the rude and violent Stanley, the husband of Blanche’s sister and who takes her in in New Orleans. They are the roles that consecrated in the cinema Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando in the film of the same name that won four Academy Awards.
The Scene, the micro-theater in English returns to Las Peñas
“It is a pleasure to be able to work the Texts by Tennessee Williams in their original language. He had already edited some of them in Spanish, but by using the precise words, originally chosen by the author, and the rhythm typical of the southern United States; the text recovers its original poetics and tone pertinent to the work”, explains Tamariz.
“He is an author for whom I feel great admirationsince his characters are very intense and are usually in Extreme situations, almost on the verge of madness. It deals with the decadence and vulnerability of the human being. Williams’s texts are close to the most intimate human relationshipssince it does not remain only in the melodramatic, but deepens the dramatic aspect, questioning the paradigm of the human being, his pain and the social conventions that subscribe to us”.
Hidalgo defends the same: “His characters are frequently in conflict with society and debate between high intensity conflictsin which the passions and guilt in its original form, alien to social conventions. The intrigue is scarce in her works, which focus on the torn expression of the characters, immersed in an oppressive environment, and whose dialogues convey poetry and sensuality”.
The challenges of micro-theater in English
As Tamariz explains, it’s not the first time who works a montage with one of Williams’s texts. In 2010 she prepared The cat on the hot roof. But taking this dramaturgy to the short theater has its own challenges.
“The main challenge is choosing the scenes that best represent the intertwined complex of the different facets of the characters. His works are very complex and that is why we do not try to summarize the work in fifteen minutes, but rather choose the most representative moment of each work”, clarifies the director. “I recognize that it has been a challenge to do it in English; especially for the actors, but when the rehearsals began, everything went smoothly and I’m happy with what we’ve achieved”.
Indeed, directing and acting in a language that is not one’s own represents all kinds of complexities, especially to achieve the effect that this initiative seeks: “to produce a exchange of experienceswhich take different forms when shared with other members of their environment and, in turn, the artists are also nourished by the response of the public”, as pointed out by the cultural director of CEN.
Microteatro, a platform that supports artists in Ecuador
He also recognizes it Elena Güiprotagonist of The Glass Menagerie. “One of the biggest challenges is work in a language that is not yours. Those who make up the casts of these works have an almost native command of English, many of them even teach in English. However, there is an additional difficulty that has to do with the time and the marked southern accent in which the works are written. This means that the casts need more time to memorize and understand their texts. Also, it leaves very little room for improvisation.”
To be up to the task of these cycles in English, says Gui, as in any production, “it is the commitment of each member with the project and with the final product. The rehearsal processes for any assembly are long and exhausting, even more so if they are works whose emotional charge in the characters it is as high as in these”.
Visions of microtheater and macrotheater in Guayaquil
But the biggest challenge was translate the emotions that Williams communicated in his dramaturgyGui acknowledges. “Tennessee Williams is not easy in Spanish or English; in fact, in no language. They are complex and very well written texts, which is why it is used so much in acting training processes around the world. This means that not many groups decide to embark on the assembly process for works like these. Of course, we also have a need for proficiency in English as a language and for “American” as a cultural construct. It is not easy to get into the skin of a character, much less -as I said before- in that of such complex characters who experience situations as extreme as those of Williams. Being up to a commitment like this is a very big responsibility with the public and with the CEN”.
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
