São Paulo – The eighth edition of Boca do Céu – Encontro Internacional de Contadores de Histórias (Sky Mouth – International Storytellers Meeting) is scheduled to take place in São Paulo from May 22 to 26, with the presence of international artists, including two Arabs: Nacer Khémir, from Tunisia, and Malika Halbaoui, from Morocco.
The event will take place at Sesc Bom Retiro, Oficinal Cultural Oswald de Andrade, Cinemateca Brasileira and Auditório Ibirapuera. It’s biennial and will have around one hundred free activities, among shows, workshops, dialogue circle and artistic performances.
To the project’s curator and founder, Regina Machado, “to tell stories is an art that’s been around since the ancient times and has travelled through the times and places of humankind.”
In addition to the Arab artists, the other international guests are Charlotte Alston (US), Ana Sofia Paiva (Portugal), Merceder Carrión (Peru) and Pepito Matéo (France). The Brazilian artists that will perform are André Gravatá, Cristino Wapichana, Daniel D’Andrea, Eric Chartiot, Marcus Borja, Marcelo D’Salete, Rosana Reátegui, Tião Carvalho and Vinícius Mazzon.
The Storytelling Nights are the highlight of the month at Sesc Bom Retiro, with performances set for May 22, 23 and 24, always at 8 pm. On Thursday (24), the night will be Arab, with Halbaoui and Khémir.
The Moroccan is a storyteller, poet and writes songs, and uses her body and voice in her performance; meanwhile, the Tunisian is a storyteller, film director and writer, and presents stories told by his mom in his childhood and about his country’s culture. There will be consecutive translation for the Portuguese and simultaneous translation for Brazilian Sign Language (LIBRAS).
(Continues after the photo gallery )
Khémir will receive a tribute with a festival of his films at Cinemateca Brasileira, from Thursday (24) to Sunday (27), with a debate with the artist at the end.
Halbaoui and Khémir will hold storytelling workshops at Oficinal Cultural Oswald de Andrade on Tuesday (22) and Wednesday (23), from 9 am to 1 pm. At 10 am of the 24th, a Thursday, Khémir will give another workshop, titled “Storyteller’s Word”, at the same place.
The concert Todo nó cego eu desato (Every dead knot I untie), at Auditório Ibirapuera, scheduled for Friday (25), at 8 pm, with traditional stories and folk songs from Brazil, Portugal and of African-American tradition, will close the Boca do Céu meeting.
All the activities in the event are for free and, for the closing concert and the Storytelling Nights, tickets will be available at the venue’s box-office one hour before the start. All the performances of Storytelling Nights will have simultaneous translation for the Brazilian Sign Language (LIBRAS), and consecutive translation for Portuguese, when needed. Further information and the full programme are at the event’s website.
Quick info:
Boca Do Céu – Encontro Internacional De Contadores De Histórias (Sky Mouth – International Storytellers Meeting)
May 22 to 26 – São Paulo
Oficina Cultural Oswald de Andrade – Rua Três Rios, 363 – Bom Retiro
Sesc Bom Retiro – Alameda Northmann, 185 – Bom Retiro
Auditório Ibirapuera – Avenida Pedro Álvares Cabral, s/nº – Parque do Ibirapuera
Cinemateca Brasileira – Largo Senador Raul Cardoso, 207 – Vila Clementino
Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
