It is in purgatory, 631 years after the death of D. Juan I, of Castile, that the plot of “The Last Battle” unfolds: blinded by power and thirsting for revenge for the defeat in Aljubarrota, D. Juan fuels the ambition of reign portugal, crazy post mortem from which his generals try to dissuade him.
The most recent play by Leirena Teatro is scheduled to premiere on Saturday in Mira de Aire and follows on from the other eight about the 1385 Battle of Aljubarrota affected this summer at the Teatro de Rua festival in Porto de Mós.
In addition to the theme, in this show, director Frédéric da Cruz Pires maintains the same creative process developed from a play “Under the Earth”, premiered in 2020. “It is a line that explores the expressionist and physical, now combined with minimalist theater and do absurd”, he explains.
In “The Last Battle”, therefore, the technique of the mask and the games of light are used, which prove to be “very important”. Impacto will also have the scenic object created, in which a kilometer of rubber band was used, and Surma’s music that, on stage, sublimates emotional states of characters and situations.
Frédéric says that the intention is to create a “visually poetic” show, with four completely different lines. As it presents a historical recreation, the fiction is presented here based on “different paintings, scenes and figures that mark the historical moment”, using a more physical aesthetic, which allows for greater contact with the public.
In short, this is a piece “to stay in people’s memories and retinas. It’s something that no one will be expecting”, he promises.
And despite portraying D. Juan I, this story can be transported to today’s society, stresses Frédéric, questioning: “How many Don Juans are there in our lives? Hitler, Mussolini and Trump himself. Will they after death not want to continue to conquer? ”.
In artistic residency for a month and a half, the Leirena company presents the result of this co-production with the municipality of Porto de Mós at 9.30 pm on October 30, at the Casa da Cultura, in Mira de Aire, in the municipality of Porto de Mós. As entries are free but require pre-reservation on here.
After the premiere, the goal is to take “The Last Battle” to other municipalities, and the show is scheduled to tour together with another Leirena production from February 2022.