Contos Indígenas
Daniele Ramalho

Contos Indigenas (Indigenous Tales) is a performance created in 2001 after we had been in touch with Brazilian Indians. These encounters opened many possibilities of research and learning to us. Transposing what we had learned into theatre was the natural thing for us to do.

Brazilian native culture is not well known among us. Although there are about 210 different ethnic groups spread throughout 24 of Brazil's 25 states, there is almost nothing of aboriginal culture in our performing arts. As an exception there are the works of Joao das Neves, a playwright and director who lived among the Kaxinawa. Our culture generally depicts native people in two alternative and prejudiced ways: either as idealized, beautiful and poetic creatures who are totally integrated into nature; or as individuals devoid of intellectual capacity, when judged according to Western aesthetic standards. 500 years after the first contacts, most of what these people have gotten from white men are difficulties: disease, progressive decay of natural resources, and bloody land disputes.

Yet contacts with the native groups open infinite possibilities for the scenic environment. Chants, dance, mythology and rituals can, for instance, be simply reproduced. We chose, though, to depart from this, migrating into a performance that uses traits of aboriginal culture as references. In Contos Indigenas the performer/author also employs dancing, singing and acting, but to state a point of view.

Contos Indigenas is also an ongoing research on movement. Eugenio Barba teaches that the socially accepted body has to be previously colonized: movement has to adjust to predetermined meanings. Contrary to this model, the artist must loosen the cultural constraints of his/her movement. Barba proposes that the body be recolonized. In the composition of our performance we studied images of indians in movement. Our exercises were largely based on the experimentation of these untried body postures. We exhaustively dissected and reproduced them. When this important stage was finished and we moved onto building the scenes, the body memory recently acquired provided us with a new quality of movement and with the use of a few of these postures.

The scene is presented and replaced right in front of the audience. There is no backstage; there are no special effects. The artist presents herself wearing no masks and so she tells stories, exposes situations and invites people to meditate over selected subjects. The only scenic resources used are aboriginal artifacts, body painting, and the performer's voice and body. Situations and characters are only suggested, and traditional myths are told but left to viewers' imagination. Each person in the audience is a partner/creator as images are built in his/her mind.

Working with Brazilian native indian culture makes us reconsider the social role of arts. It arouses the awareness of identity and diversity, and this is a tool for the acquisition of a wider notion of citizenship in society. True communication, and not mere transgression, is the key factor leading to this desirable result.

This is only the beginning of our research. There are still other matters to be studied more deeply in the future that go beyond the diversity of cultures and their evolution into the present day. We want to bring in different points of view, perhaps inviting Brazilian indians to join in the process of creation.  The exchange of further information might help these groups claim in practice their rights as Brazilian citizens. It is also our intention to present Contos Indigenas to some of the groups we have been in touch with and give them what we consider our gift in return.

We keep aboard the "floating island," which for Eugenio Barba is an uncertain terrain that might sink anytime. We do not know where we'll be taken or who we will find. This is what definitely matters to us.

Daniele Ramalho
danieleramalho@hotmail.com

Daniele Ramalho is an actress, producer, and the creator of Nucleo de Pesquisa Popular together with Andre Masseno (2000). Contos Indigenas, a production from the group, will be touring several Brazilian towns in 2005 for a special season. It is also scheduled to be presented in Jemmapes, Paris in May/2005 as part of the Brazil in France year long program.

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