The 8th Encuentro of the Hemispheric Institute sought to examine the broad intersections between urban space, performance and political/artistic action in the Americas. From the critical poetics of body art to the occupation of public space by social movements, the event invited participants to explore the borders, identities and practices through which subjectivities, hegemonies and counter-hegemonies are constructed in the spaces of the city and beyond. Antonio Araújo's lecture is a discussion of theatrical experiments performed in streets and public spaces of the São Paulo neighborhood of Bom Retiro during the creative process of Teatro da Vertigem's Bom Retiro 958 Metros. From the practice of the situationist-inspired dérive used as a device for field research, to improvisations, to urban games conducted in the open and in dialogue with architecture and the layout of the neighborhood - Teatro da Vertigem's whole process was marked by experiences of urban intervention. Miguel Rubio's lecture explores how dramatic languages expand and invade public space, converging with citizen actions. To this end, he looks at several recent artistic proposals that act on and in public spaces - inserting themselves into social processes in the context of contemporary Peruvian society.

Antonio Araújo is Artistic Director of Teatro da Vertigem and Professor in the Department of Performing Arts of ECA-USP. With Teatro da Vertigem, he has directed O Paraíso Perdido; O Livro de Jó; Apocalipse 1, 11; BR-3; Bom Retiro 958 Metros, among other works. He has been invited to teach on site specific and urban performance internationally. He was awarded the Golden Medal in the category of Best Realization of a Production for BR-3, in the Prague Quadrennial 2011.

Miguel Rubio is a director, theater researcher, and founding member of Grupo Cultural Yuyachkani. His most recent directions include: Con-cierto Olvido (2010); El último ensayo (2008); Sin Título-técnica mixta (2004); Hecho en el Perú-Vitrinas para un Museo de la Memoria (2001). He is also author of Raíces y semillas: Maestros y caminos del teatro en América Latina (2011), Notas sobre el teatro (2001) and El cuerpo ausente (2008).