The 2024 Travessuras Culturais Festival returns for its 8th edition, under the theme “Creation in Ebullition: When Art Transmutes“, celebrating the transformative power of art in times of crisis. Whether it’s an individual artist’s struggle to express their vision of the world, or the collective effort to preserve values, culture, and identity in the face of adversity. The focus will be on women and comic books.
This theme resonates in every presentation, exhibition, and performance of the festival, showing that art not only reflects the world around it but also transforms it. The creative ebullition that springs from these moments testifies to the irrepressible power of human creation which, in adversity, finds momentum to innovate, resist, and transcend.
With a diverse and accessible program, the festival fosters the meeting of cultures, ideas, and artistic forms, reaffirming its commitment to bringing the world to the island and carrying the island to the world.
Comics in Schools:
Throughout the year, in partnership with schools, we will work on color and script. Students will receive an A4 format copy, in black and white, of an original album and, without having seen the original, will have to color and write the script. The final works will be exhibited during the festival in the hall of John dos Passos.
Artistic Performance:
Painting in Ebullition by Dalila Souto. During the festival, spectators will have the unique chance to see the creative process live. The painter, immersed in the energy of the event, will absorb the influences of the performances, exhibitions, and debates surrounding her.
Two outdoor exhibitions with QR codes and audio in Portuguese, French, and English:
“How a Comic Book is Made”:
An exploration behind the scenes of comic book creation, from script to color, revealing the secrets behind the images and stories that captivate readers of all ages.
“Music in Ebullition Circumventing Censorship”, by Dominique Dreyfus:
An exhibition about songs that, through festive language, metaphors, and double meanings, express what is forbidden to say, bypassing different forms of censorship. This exhibition celebrates musical rhythm as an inexhaustible source of inspiration.
In the hall of John dos Passos, an exhibition by Sylvain Barré:
Videos, illustrations, and paintings offering an immersive look at the work of this multi-talented artist.
Immersive musical and visual concert – The Worlds of Aldebaran by Arrigo Barnabé:
A key figure in the evolution of Brazilian music and Leo, creator of the comic book The Worlds of Aldebaran, a reference in realistic French science fiction. A show combining live music and comics, with real-time visual projections, creating an immersive sensory experience. Visual creation by Caetano Brazil, editing by Sylvain Barré, and video mapping by Filipe Ferraz. Narration by Arrigo Barnabé, pianos by Arrigo Barnabé and Paulo Braga.
Maria Teresa and Toninho do Carmo will perform songs from the exhibition “Music in Ebullition Circumventing Censorship“.
Two dance performances:
M(è)r(e)s (Mothers), choreographed by Michelle Brown from the Ladainha Company (France):
A story about women and water, diving into unexplored depths. An invitation to rewrite our myths, reconnect with a poetic explanation of life, and refound a reality in a society that has lost all connection with the world, the earth, and nature.
Dance in Ebullition, by Michelle Caires – Artística Studio, Calheta:
A performance that fuses tradition and innovation, exploring female corporality.
A theater play: “The Oldest of All“:
Based on her master’s thesis in visual anthropology, Inês Tecedeiro joins director and actress Constança de Jesus and director and anthropologist Filipe Ferraz to create an interdisciplinary show about aging. The Oldest of All brings together bodies, voices, movements, and places of older women, in video, to interact with two young performers on stage.
Forum Theater with Manuela Brasil and Ricardo Brito, “April for Them” by Theater Workshop 8:
A show that recalls the struggle of women at a time when they had few rights. A journey through the conquest of their rights: to vote, to be mistress of their bodies, to revolt, and to fight for their future. The show will be followed by a Forum Theater session.
Four workshops:
Composition Workshop with Arrigo Barnabé:
An immersion in the complexities of musical composition, led by one of the masters of contemporary Brazilian music.
Forum Theater Masterclass with Rui Frati (Director of the Theater of the Oppressed, Paris) :
Will explore theatre as a tool for social dialogue and transformation, following the method of the Theater of the Oppressed.
Dance Workshop:
Meeting between the Ladainha Company (France) and the Artística Studio, Calheta.
Capoeira Workshop and Roda de Capoeira with Mestre Beija-Flor:
A celebration of this martial and cultural art that transcends borders, connecting spirits and bodies in movement.
And finally, as every year, the Extravagant Encounters with Arrigo Barnabé and Sylvain Barré.