Place and Nation in the Theatre of Yuyachkani, Bando De Teatro Olodum and Catalinas Sur

Staging Port Cities: Place and Nation in the Theatre of Yuyachkani, Bando de Teatro Olodum and Catalinas Sur. Nicholson Sanz, Michelle The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author For additional information about this publication click this link. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/xmlui/handle/123456789/12982 Information about this research object was correct at the time of download; we occasionally make corrections to records, please therefore check the published record when citing. For more information contact [email protected] Staging Port Cities: Place and Nation in the Theatre of Yuyachkani, Bando de Teatro Olodum and Catalinas Sur Michelle Nicholson Sanz Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Queen Mary, University of London October 2015 1 Statement of Originality I, Michelle Nicholson Sanz, confirm that the research included within this thesis is my own work or that where it has been carried out in collaboration with, or supported by others, that this is duly acknowledged below and my contribution indicated. Previously published material is also acknowledged below. I attest that I have exercised reasonable care to ensure that the work is original, and does not to the best of my knowledge break any UK law, infringe any third party’s copyright or other Intellectual Property Right, or contain any confidential material. I accept that the College has the right to use plagiarism detection software to check the electronic version of the thesis. I confirm that this thesis has not been previously submitted for the award of a degree by this or any other university. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author. Signature: Date: 9 October 2015. Details of collaboration and publications: Some parts of section 2.3 (‘Re-routing Afro-Brazilian Identity towards the African Diaspora [Áfricas, Bando de Teatro Olodum, 2007]’) have been published as part of the article: ‘On my mind’s world map, I see an Africa: Bando de Teatro Olodum’s Re- routing of Afro-Brazilian Identity’, Research in Drama Education: The Journal of Applied Theatre and Performance, 19 (2014), Special Issue: ‘New Practice, New Methods, New Voices’, 287–95. 2 Abstract This doctoral thesis examines theatre as a site for counteracting hegemonic representations of the nation. My focus is on three contemporary Latin American theatre companies and the ways in which they stage the sense of place of the port cities where they are based. By examining these groups’ explorations of the political and social imaginaries related to these ports, I aim to determine how theatre can challenge essentialised discourses of national identity. An examination of the Peruvian theatre group Yuyachkani allows me to look at the place of indigenous peoples in Lima. Through a discussion of Catalinas Sur, based in Buenos Aires, I highlight the cultural identities newly produced and those erased as a consequence of mid-nineteenth-century European immigration to the city. The focus on Bando de Teatro Olodum facilitates a consideration of struggles against racial discrimination towards Afro-Brazilians in Salvador, Bahia. I propose close readings of specific productions devised by these troupes that concentrate on three main topics. The first of these is migration, examining how foreigners have infused difference in these ports. The second theme looks at conceptions of time and the third considers notions of space. In all three cases the focus allows for a questioning of dominant discourses on modernity, order and progress. Such rhetoric has been equally predominant in Peru, Brazil and Argentina and has justified exclusivist accounts of the nation since the early histories of these republics. Through recourse to performance analysis, I examine theatre’s capacity to shift the focal point of interest towards the borders of mainstream society. My claim is that this perspective allows room for presences that have been historically rendered mute and also helps to draw attention to modes of social and political organisation that differ from those naturalised by national elites. 3 Acknowledgements A number of people and institutions have made this research possible. My deepest thanks, first and foremost, have to go to Professor Maria Delgado, my supervisor. Her invaluable feedback, careful readings and sensitive advice have informed every part of this thesis. The flaws and shortcomings of this document are, of course, entirely my own. It is no exaggeration to say that without Professor Delgado’s support, this doctoral research would not have been possible. I am also grateful to the people who have read parts of this work or have discussed these ideas with me, providing me with precious insights and encouragement: Professors Paul Heritage (my second supervisor), Silvija Jestrovic and Joanne Tompkins. Special thanks are due to Professor Janelle Reinelt, who inspired me to embark on this doctoral research in the first place, while completing a master’s degree in the Theatre Department of the University of Warwick. She has been a kind-hearted, insightful mentor. I also owe gratitude to the artists who shared their work and life memories with me during periods of fieldwork for this research – the members of Yuyachkani, Catalinas Sur and Bando de Teatro Olodum. Special thanks are due to directors Chica Carelli, Márcio Meirelles, Miguel Rubio and Adhemar Biancchi, who gave me access to the groups’ archives and venues. Miguel Rubio and Adhemar Bianchi also gave me their friendship, allowing me to collaborate with their work in ways that have been stimulating and exciting. My research has benefited greatly from their support. Adhemar’s help deserves special mention. During my fieldwork in Buenos Aires, he went above and beyond what was expected, guiding me through the streets and history of La Boca, introducing me to Catalinas Sur’s cast with unbounded hospitality and inviting me to many a memorable conversation over Argentine food and wine. I am also most grateful to the many people who have strengthened my belief that friendship is as much an emotional attachment as it is a life-long commitment to generosity, trust and loyalty. Juan Carlos Carrillo, Annina Clerici (my sensible self- appointed Doktormutter), Bastián Carrillo Clerici and Flurina Carrillo Clerici welcomed me into their family during a most productive stay at their home, enjoying the many 4 pleasures of writing from libraries in Zurich. My dear Queen Mary PhD comrades Sarah Thomasson, Catriona Fallow and Hari Marini have been wonderful, loving ‘cables to earth’ during this journey. Comrade Thomasson deserves special thanks for her help with what seemed like an endless bibliography. Other friends have been particularly generous during periods of fieldwork or when hard times called for large souls: Ray Steel, Victor Krebs, Luis Treviño and Alex Skinner, Eide and Amelia Paiva, Luke Miles, and Elly Kilroy. There were also friends who accompanied me with words of support and wise advice: Barbara Gougoulis, Ben Newton, Juan Luis Cornejo, Carla Fajardo and Sylvan Baker. I also owe thanks to my family, my fixed point: ‘Give me a fixed point and I will move the world’ (Archimedes). They have taught me the importance of unconditional love as a place where I can return even after the longest, farthest journey. In particular, my mother and grandfather (mi mamá y mi Tata) have kept a fixed point alive on earth for me while being miles and oceans apart. I am also grateful to Mimi and Dico and my wonderful mamá Empecita for their love and kindness while I stayed with them in Cusco. Gratitude is also due to my dead ones. Lingering within me through sustained inner conversations, they have advised me, laughed with me, taken care of me and kept me company: my grandmother (mi Matita), my father (mi papá), my tía Nanita and my charming Kevin Sharpe. Their love and belief in me have kept me going. Finally, I am deeply grateful to the institutions that provided me with the necessary support and funding to carry out this doctoral research: Queen Mary University of London for fully funding my doctoral studies and granting me an award that helped to cover the expenses of my fieldwork in Buenos Aires, Lima and Salvador de Bahia; and the Society for Latin American Studies (SLAS, UK), whose economic support was also critical for my field research. 5 Table of Contents Introduction…………………………………………………………………….. 8 0.1 Putting ‘the Others’ in their Place………………………………………………………… 10 A. Buenos Aires and Argentina…………………………………………………………... 12 B. Lima and Peru……………………………………………………………. 16 C. Salvador and Brazil……………………………….………………………………………. 19 0.2 Positioning the Selected Theatre Companies………..…………………………….... 24 A. Latin American Popular Theatre………………………………………… 24 B. Yuyachkani, 1970……………………………………...…………………….…………….. 25 C. Catalinas Sur, 1983………………………………………………………. 26 D. Bando de Teatro Olodum, 1990………………………………………….. 28 0.3 Research Context…………………………………………………………….. 29 0.4 Methodological and Theoretical Frameworks……………………………….. 32 0.5 Structure……………………………………………………………………………….…………… 34 Chapter 1. Place: Utopias and Heterotopias………………………….………. 36 1.1 National Utopias….………………………………………………………….. 36 A. Argentina: Illusions of Whiteness……..…………………………...…….... 36 B. Peru: Racism without Races ……………………………..………...……...

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