Laura Lopez |
Segovia (EFE).- A stuffed animal butcher shop serving “Barbie thighs” and “Winnie the Pooh hamburger” and a funeral in the form of a concert and theater of objects, which turns out to be “a hymn to life” , have opened this Wednesday the 37th edition of the Segovia Titirimundi International Puppet Festival.
Since early in the morning, the particular “food truck” of the Belgian theater company Pikz Palace has been installed in the Plaza del Azoguejo in Segovia, at the foot of the Aqueduct. he had gathered around him about a hundred children.
Two peculiar butchers with blood-spattered aprons have taught this audience of children how to prepare different cuts of teddy bears: “The most important thing is hygiene”, said one of them, while his partner blew his nose with the same cloth with the one who cleaned the knife.
A stuffed butcher shop serving “Barbie thighs” and “Winnie the Pooh hamburger” and a funeral in the form of a concert and object theater have opened the 37th edition of Titirimundi. EFE / Pablo Martin
The constant laughter of the children, their cries of emotion each time the actors appeal to the crowd for help and the applause of thanks make up the unmistakable soundtrack of Titirimundi that began in Segovia today and will sound until next Monday, 15 of May.
In six days, 288 performances produced by 35 theater companies from ten different countries such as France, Belgium, Denmark, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Slovenia or Argentina will take place in the city.
Of the almost 300 passes, fifty will be deployed on the street, in an edition that arrives “with another normality” and “losing those fears of past editions” as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic, as the director has indicated in statements to the media. of the festival, Marian Palma.
In addition to the show that will remain installed every day in the Plaza del Azoguejo, starting this afternoon it will be possible to see in other neighborhoods of Segovia the performances of “The Quacksalver” by Sofie Krog (Denmark-Spain) and the emblematic “Circo de las Fleas”, which does six shows in the afternoon.
a peculiar funeral
Already tonight, at 8:30 p.m., the official opening will take place at the Juan Bravo Theater with the representation of “KAR Repass, Anna Karenina cabaret” by Fekete Seretlek & Studio Damúza (Czech Republic-Slovenia).
Marian Palma has defined this work as follows: “A concert with objects, which is a funeral, but with a last goodbye and a hymn to life that I hope everyone enjoys because it is… different”.
This inaugural performance will be performed by the Fekete Seretlek & Studio Damúza company, made up of six actors and musicians trained at the Prague Theater Academy and who play the accordion, double bass, trumpet, cello, violin, drawer and battery.
Through popular songs from countries such as Russia, Serbia or Finland, little text and the particular language of the theater of objects, the group offers a review of the novel “Anna Karenina” by Leo Tolstoy that involves the public, as explained today in a press pass for one of the actors, Matija Solce.
“It’s a combination where you don’t know when it’s music and when it’s an event for the people, because the people are included in it, that’s very important to us, to destroy the fourth wall, so it changes all the time and you never know where the impulse comes from”, he explained.
A version of the classic novel that is not linear, but offers “different levels of understanding” and the possibility for each person in the audience to make their own reflection, with the theme of death – “the base of the puppets”, according to the slovenian artist -backdrop.
Budget
About the organization, Marian Palma has underlined the complexity of carrying out the festival without having an accurate budget, since they have only been able to count on the 100,000 euros from the usual agreement with the Segovia City Council and the agreement with the Provincial Council, which makes it possible the tour of the province.
The amount that the Junta de Castilla y León will contribute, through the Siglo Foundation, and the National Institute of Performing Arts and Music (INAEM), of the Ministry of Culture, will only know “after the bull”.
“It is quite difficult to launch a program without knowing how far you can go, it is very risky, but Titirimundi has to continue, regardless of the situation and the management,” defended Marian, who took office after the death in 2017 of the founder of the festival, Julio Michel.
national tour
In addition to the functions that have been carried out throughout this day in the capital, since April 28 Titirimundi has undertaken a tour that will pass through 39 towns in the province, twelve spaces in Madrid, four municipalities in Castilla and León and three other cities outside the autonomous community.
Also starting yesterday is the school campaign, Titiricole, which will have twenty-five performances at the Municipal Library of the capital, which students from fourteen educational centers in Segovia, Ávila, Valladolid and Madrid will be able to enjoy.
In the city of Segovia, it will be on the weekend when the “flood” performances arrive, both in the street, in the courtyards of buildings and in the theaters, with works of all the usual genres of the festival, from the theater of objects even the classic string, glove and club puppets. EFE