Ministry of Education and Culture

Esc. Born Of Commerce Dr. Raúl Peña

Theater
Paraguayan

1st Scientific Course

Theater in the Colony:
During the colony, outside the Jesuit sphere, theatrical manifestations were few and poor. The
secular ones consisted mainly of the "rúas", more or less allegorical parades of costumed
characters that may have been the origin of our "cambara'anga!" - allegorical acts, pantomimes,
declamations and even dramatic dialogues that were offered in special circumstances such as
change of governor, visit of viceroys, etc.

Only at the end of the 18th century did theatrical events begin to gain importance in Asunción
and casts of young people in which even young ladies of good society acted performed
important works such as "Las vida es sueño" by Calderón de la Barca, or "Trancedo" by
Voltaire. This flowering did not bear fruit in local dramaturgy and on the other hand the French
dictatorship was responsible for liquidating it after Independence.

Theater in the Missions:

The Missionary Theater was divided into two categories:

*The one offered on solemn religious dates (Easter, Corpus, Christmas), which were allegorical
dances, processions and sacramental autos

*The one represented in special circumstances such as the visit of a superior where secular
forms were allowed: Comedy, hors d'oeuvres and opera.

The interpreters were in all cases indigenous.

The original pieces were lost after the expulsion of the Jesuits.

The only text that came to us was transmitted orally and collected from a Paraguayan peasant
by Dr. Manuel Gondra at the beginning of this century.

Creation of the National Theater

After a long hiatus from the dictatorship of Dr. Francia, Carlos Lopez came and laid the
foundations of the Paraguayan Theater.

In Europe, López hired a Spanish professor, playwright, and theater director, Ildefonso Antonio
Bermejo, who arrived in the country in March 1855 to form the first national theatrical cast in
addition to designing and constructing the National Theater building (at the back of (what is now
the Municipal Theater) He taught acting, translated works from French and English, put on plays
and planned the first seasons.

The first presentation of the National Company took place on November 4, 1855. Among the
selected works were "Muérete y vers" by Bretón de los Herreros, and other short pieces
arranged by Bermejo. The repertoire of that company included dramas, comedies and even
zarzuelas and operettas.

The oldest surviving Paraguayan piece is "Un paraguayo Leal" which had actually already been
released in Europe with the title "The Power of a False Friend" and Bermejo adapted it by giving
Paraguayan names to the characters and placing speech bubbles and jokes. in Guaraní that
some attribute to Natalicio Talavera.

Theater and war

Until the start of the War of the Triple Alliance (1864-1870), the theater lived in our country
thanks to the visits of foreign companies, mostly Spanish, from the Río de la Plata.
On October 16, 1866, one of the only two pieces that saw the light of day during the war was
released: "The funny story of the Triple Alliance" written by the American resident in the country
Cornelio Porter Bliss and on May 24, 1867 " The conference of Don Pedro II" by Bolivian
resident Dr. Tristán Roca. Unfortunately there are no traces of either of these two works.

Postwar and reconstruction

With the end of the war, theatrical activity resurfaced with the return of foreign companies that
brought their repertoire of romantic, post-romantic, traditional and naturalistic Spanish theater,
their zarzuelas, operas and operettas, to which was added some contemporary European
theater. and even some Shakespeare and Moliere.

In 1886, a Catalan businessman, Baudillo Alió, obtained the concession of the old national
theater to expand it and convert it into what the Municipal Theater is today. It was inaugurated
on July 21, 1889.

At that time there was also the Olimpo Theater in Asunción, whose premises were on Palma
Street between Convention and Ayolas and was inaugurated in February 1887, and the theater
of the Italian businessman Antonio Andreuzzi in the Cancha Sociedad where today the Hotel del
Paraguay and the National Library.

In 1882, the first play written by a Paraguayan premiered: "The Powders of Chirrimbinbin" by
Angel Peña, of which unfortunately there are no traces either.

The first 15 years of the 20th century

Starting in 1900, theater began to grow and gain weight in Paraguay. At the age of 21, Ignacio
A. Pane wrote a small work "Dialogue between mother and daughter" presented in 1901 at an
event at the girls' school. In 1906 Alejandro Guanes wrote "The Camera Obscura". In 1909
Pane published "Dialogue of the Dead." In 1915 Rafael Rodriguez Rojas published "Flor del
valle".

The emergence of Paraguayan theater

According to Josefina Plá, the year 1915 marks a true initiation of contemporary Paraguayan
theatrical literature. That year Rafael Rodriguez Rojas published his comedy titled Flor del Valle
y J. in El Liberal de Asunción. On May 14, Demetrio Morínigo premiered his drama "Martyrdoms
of a Mother or Revenge of the Colonel" with the Meca company. Two years later the Chico de la
Peña company staged "El Intruso" by Leopoldo Centurión. Later the same author presented "El
Huracán" and "The end of a story" "The romantic dinner. Eusebio A.Lugo brought "La chala",
"Camino de la Fuente" and "La epoeya del Mariscal" to the stage.

Other playwrights who emerged at the time are Pedro Juan Caballero ( The Past, El Imán, El
Vencido, El cínico and Los buitres, all of them lost); José María de Nestosa ( Over-all
Asunceno, and A Husband is Raffled), Leopoldo Ramos Gimenez, a cultist of social theater in
the anarchist line of Rafael Barret ( The Gold Inquisition and The Inheritance); Francisco Martín
Barrios (The Stolen Spark and Mariscal López); Manuel Ortiz Guerrero (Eireté, The crime of
Tintalila and the Conquest).

Starting in 1924, Luis Ruffinello, Miguel Pecci Saavedra, Facundo Recalde, Arturo Alsina,
Roque Centurión Miranda, Josefina Plá, Pedro Juan Caballero and Benigno Villa among others
emerged. This is the generation that introduces the theater of ideas or thesis and symbolism
organically in their work. The model of the work continues to be the basically realistic drama or
melodrama in three acts to which the discussion of ideas or thesis or the instructive
exemplification of the problem that is being posed is introduced.

In 1933, Julio Correa(*) appeared for the first time, taking customs and its molds to write dramas
and comedies in Guaraní in which all the force and emotion of the real life that surrounded him
seemed to fit. With realistic and powerful language, he raises the most immediate and vital
problems of the people.

Correa revived interest in theater at a time when the public and authorities had their attention
focused on the Chaco War (1932-1935). In 1933 he released Sandia Yvyguy, Guerra aj, Tereho
jevy Frentepe and Péicha guarante. Julio Correa, in addition to writing plays, directed and
acted. He formed a cast of popular actors, with no previous experience, and transformed them
into the top performers on our stage. To name a few names: his own wife,. Georgina de Corres,
Ernesto Baez, Mirna Veneroso, Harmondio Soler Núñez, Carlos Gomez, Teodoro Mongelós,
Espartaco Martínez, Aníbal Romero, Elizarda Cazal de Rodas, his nephew Enrique Correa.

In 1941 the theatrical cast of the Ateneo Paraguayo was created. A series of names appear and
constitute what today can be described as "modern Paraguayan dramaturgy": Ezequiel
Gonzalez Alsina, who premieres La quixotic blonde and El gran rival; Jaime Bestard, who
presented Arévalo and Los sparrows de la loma; Augusto Roa Bastos who, with the
collaboration of Fernando Oca del Valle, premieres While the Day Comes; and already in the
50s the works of Mario Halley Mora, Néstor Romero Valdovinos, José María Rivarola Matto,
Josefina Plá herself were added in another stage of her dramatic production (the building,
Alcestes, The kitchen of shadows, The eight on the sea) to mention the most notable names.

In 1956, the prolific writer Mario Halley Mora (1927) started in the theater with the dramatic
comedy "In Search of Mary". Some of his works are: "The Impala", "A Paraguayan in Spain", "A
Paraguayan in Arabia", "The Chameleon", "The Last Caudillo", "Timothy's Poncho", "The One
Hundred Dollar Bill" , "The Sacristan", "The Madam", "The News", "False Witness", "Magdalena
Servín", "Interrogante" and "The Hand of Man". He also wrote works in Gauraní: "The
Commissioner of Valle Lorito", "The Company Sergeant", and "Plata Yvyguy Rekavo".

THEATER
During the first half of the 20th century, the history of Paraguayan theater does not include
many names that have transcended national borders, with the possible exception of Josefina
Plá who, in addition to being the author and co-author (with Roque Centurión Miranda) of
several theatrical works, is among the critics who have studied Paraguayan theater the most. As
in other Latin American countries, historical-political and economic-social reasons partially
explain the fact that theater has been, and continues to be, the least fertile genre of Paraguayan
literature.

Of enormous cultural significance for a bilingual country like Paraguay is the theatrical
production of Julio Correa, an author of great merit and initiator, in the 1930s, of theater in
Guaraní in works inspired by the historical-political context of those years, and particularly in the
Chaco War. Other representatives of Guarani theater from that time are Francisco Barrios,
Roque Centurión Miranda and Luis Ruffinelli.

During the last four decades, among the authors of the most performed works, both inside and
outside the country, the following stand out in particular: Ernesto Báez, Mario Halley Mora, the
most prolific of this period and author of several pieces in "yopará" (voc . Guaraní meaning
"mixed"), ie, in Spanish and Guaraní; Alcibiades González Delvalle, perhaps the most
controversial and controversial playwright of the eighties; Ovidio Benítez Pereira, José María
Rivarola Matto and Julio César Troche, to mention only the best known currently.

Contemporary Paraguayan theater, poorly known and disseminated - like almost all of
this country's literature - presents singular creations such as those of Josefina Pla,
Augusto Roa Bastos, Mario Halley Mora, Alcibiades González Delvalle, Roque
Centurión Miranda, Ricardo Lago, Gloria Muñoz and Edda de los Ríos. Generally,
performing arts were an important means of dissemination throughout the country's
history. In times like that of the Stroessner dictatorship, it was an instrument of struggle
against ideas institutionalized by power. As a result, the censorship had its eyes very
close to the representations, as proven by the case of the ban in 1975 of the creation
titled San Fernando by Alcibiades González Delvalle, which, due to its nature that
challenged the mythologized official history, was censored. , and also at the beginning
of the democratic transition after the coup of General Rodríguez, in 1989. Hence,
throughout history, power saw the theatrical genre as an enemy due to its ease of
disseminating ideas and habits among the Paraguayan population, and condemned it
to a conception of declamatory art above its character as a catalyst for ideas. and
consciences.
Paraguayan theater underwent a very important renovation starting in the 1930s, with
the appearance of Julio Correa. In the Paraguayan environment of the 1940s, there
were two clearly distinguished groups. On the one hand there was the current of José
Arturo Alsina, a supporter of a universal theater, which without escaping from the
particular, did not fall into folklorism, and whose drama had Pirandellian resonances, in
the words of Teresa Méndez-Faith, The right to be born (1925 ) is the best example of
his creation; on the other, that of theater in Guaraní, whose antecedents date back to
approximately 1926, with Francisco Martín Barrios, Rigoberto Fontao Meza and Félix
F. Fernández, whose expansion and success would come in the 1930s with Julio
Correa, considered by critics as the promoter of markedly popular theater, which
tended towards orality, intuitive technique and linguistic conditioning. This author
promoted a type of theater that mainly reached the public for the simple reason that it
reproduced the bilingual oral situation of the country. Those attending the
performances understood his works, due to the decisive component of the Guaraní
language, and participated in them to a greater degree than in the staging of works
from other aspects, since, generally, the entire Paraguayan theater of that time He was
quite ossified in a vacuous post-romanticism and procedures that smelled like
mothballs, despite Alsina's attempts. It is also important because a social fund was
perceived that the public attended with interest.

In the forties of the last century, Roque Centurión Miranda and other names undertook
the definitive renewal of Paraguayan theater and approached the institutions in order to
establish it. Two Spaniards participated in this renovation: Josefina Pla (1903-1999)
and Fernando Oca del Valle (1893-1972). Josefina Pla, whose theatrical work has not
been excessively studied, went to Paraguay in 1928 with her husband, the sculptor and
ceramist Julián de la Herrería, whom she met in Spain, probably in Villajoyosa
(Alicante) while he was enjoying a scholarship. to expand artistic knowledge. An
important part of her adventures during the late 1920s and well into the civil war of
1936 took place in Valencia, where Josefina connected through the prelate Guerra-
Galvany, surely her uncle, with some poets. Among them was José María Bayarri, as
remembered today for his work El perill català as for his poetry. Julián de la Herrería
molded some ceramic pieces and sculptures that appear in the collections of the
“González Martí” Ceramic Museum in Valencia. During this stay, and given the
presence of Josefina Pla as a participant and spectator in cultural events, she was able
to immerse herself in the theatrical experience of the group "El Búho", although not as
thoroughly as in the poetic field. The activity of "El Búho", along with other experiences,
would allow him to develop his dramatic knowledge years later in Paraguay, once he
established his permanent residence in Asunción, in 1938.

The second Spanish name to highlight in the renewal of contemporary Paraguayan

theater is that of the exiled Fernando Oca del Valle. This, unlike Josefina Pla, began
his exile after the Spanish civil war in the Paraguayan capital in 1940. He was one of
the diaspora who concluded his journey in the welcoming American lands. He was
never a creator and there is no known work written by him, although he does present
some attribution as a co-author. However, he was a renowned director and, above all,
one of the most remembered theater educators in Paraguay, although no treaties of his
are preserved either. Within the Spanish scene prior to the exile of 1939, he developed
his most important theatrical work as an actor and director in the theater collective "La
Farándula", in addition to his knowledge of Spanish theater activity in the 1930s
acquired as a spectator of the Madrid scene. . This is demonstrated by the fact that he
applied the knowledge that the avant-garde and traveling theaters had put into practice,
and specifically, the groups "La Barraca", "El Búho" and the "Misiones Pedagógicas" of
Alejandro Casona, in addition to his own, " Showbiz". This statement is based on the
nature of his pedagogy, which he developed after his arrival in the Guaraní country,
where he promoted the Comedy Company of the Ateneo Paraguayo.

Unlike other playwrights exiled in America, she did not arrive in the country where she
would establish herself with her own creations written, performed or with fame in the
performing world. Nor had he developed renowned activities, although he knew in
depth the work of the director due to his experience. He is the antithesis of José
Ricardo Morales, to cite a name from the theater of exile in America, in the creative
field. However, he shares with Morales the experience in avant-garde theater, and the
pedagogical aspect and creation of dramatic schools, which translates into a decisive
influence on the development and evolution of the dramatic panorama of the nations
that welcomed them. Let us not forget that José Ricardo Morales was the promoter of
the crucial Chilean University Theater, with Pedro de la Barra. In the same way,
Fernando Oca del Valle had a theatrical adventure in Paraguay worth highlighting, as
we intend in this work.

However, given the lack of extensive archives and materials on the Paraguayan
theater of this time, and as a long period of time has not elapsed, we have preferably
started from oral testimonies to reconstruct the figure of Oca del Valle. Among them,
those provided to us by the intellectual Raúl Amaral and the theater scholar Edda de
los Ríos stand out. Let us start from what is established in the manuals and works of
the Guaraní country, at the time when Oca de Valle arrives after the republican defeat,
to a country that precisely did not stand out for hosting too many Spanish exiles,
possibly because the political regimes of the time were markedly pro-German until the
course of World War II changed. Along with Oca del Valle, in 1940, as minimally
relevant figures, only the jurist Guillermo Cabanellas de Torres arrived in Paraguay,
who settled in Buenos Aires three years later, and the engineer José Marcos, father of
the writer, critic and professor of Literature. , Juan Manuel Marcos, who was a
businessman of the Municipal Theater and supported Oca del Valle, also obtaining the
presence of Margarita Xirgu in Paraguay.

Fernando Oca del Valle was a professor at the Faculty of Philosophy of the National
University of Asunción, and actively participated in the restructuring and in the
gatherings of the Ateneo Paraguayo, where, according to Amaral in a personal letter,
"he commanded, he says, not very democratically." , the theatrical area. He entered
the Asunción theater scene as a director, and renewed the stale post-romantic
repertoire. Until its renewal, works such as Flor de un día by Camprodón and Don Juan
Tenorio by José Zorrilla were performed in Asunción under the label of "latest"
productions. He replaced this production with other more "modern" works, which,
although they did not correspond to all the theatrical trends that emerged in other
countries, even neighboring ones, did represent a step forward in Paraguay to achieve
a greater degree of updating the theater. Those more "modern" were the authors of the
Madrid scene -Benavente- and those that he had represented -Casona- fundamentally.
They were the authors that he had represented and directed in "La Farándula"; popular
in Spain before the Civil War.

The fact that we do not know most of Fernando Oca del Valle's activities before his
exile in Paraguay is due, in large part, to the fact that he never boasted great dramatic
knowledge, contrary to what used to happen among the country's intellectuals.
Guarani. He limited himself to applying his knowledge and encouraging the arrival of
new groups of actors, actresses, technicians and directors, who brought new points of
view that were no longer based exclusively on aspects such as the exclusive
importance of recitation or the search for realistic scenarios. For this reason, his
enemies fought him with the argument that he had only integrated philodramatic groups
in Madrid or groups of traveling or local comedians, without taking into account the
reality and validity of the "Pedagogical Missions", for example. These professional
problems ended up dissolving the Ateneo Paraguayo company in 1947, although five
years later, in 1952, Oca del Valle returned to direct the group when it was refounded.

But he faced the trend of Correa's popular theater, whose problem was its elementary
technical resources. The expression was effective, because it was in Guaraní, but the
care of these linguistic aspects made us forget the treatment of the scenic resources
and the arguments themselves. Fernando Oca del Valle reacted against this type of
theater and its localism, too, and opted for the introduction of more universal aspects.
This cost him quarrels and the contempt of an important part of the Paraguayan theater
environment. But he created a school and his example was continued by a good group
of students, especially actors: Amanda Castaing de Cooper, María Elena Sachero,
Adolfo Cuéllar and Mario Prono, who defended the notoriety of this most universal
theater.

It is in 1941 when the theatrical cast of the Ateneo Paraguayo was created, which put
an end to a state of ataraxia in the performing field, as stated by Carlos R. Centurión
and more explicitly Edda de los Ríos. Thanks to the work of the Ateneo Paraguayo,
Josefina Pla and Roque Centurión Miranda premiered again, Luis Rufinelli, also
president of the institution's theater subcommittee, Jaime Bestard appeared on the
dramatic scene and innovative new authors such as Ezequiel González Alsina began
their performing practices , Mario Halley Mora, Néstor Romero Valdovinos, Rogelio
Silvero, and even the, later, well-known novelist Augusto Roa Bastos. Outside of
traditional theater, in the 1950s, young people like Manuel E. b. Argüello and Julio
César Troche learned there and continued their expansive work in the country's
theater. He was the director of the Ateneo Paraguayo Comedy Company from the
beginning, and in April 1942 he premiered the comedy Arévalo by Jaime Bestard at the
Teatro Municipal. In the premises of this institution, conferences and seminars were
held, many promoted by him. His only foray into the field of creation is certainly
confusing, because Centurión notes that he wrote a comedy with Augusto Roa Bastos,
in three acts, titled While the Day Arrives. However, according to the data obtained that
appear in the bibliography of Augusto Roa Bastos de Milda Rivarola, which we have
been able to confirm, While the Day Comes was represented by the Compañía del
Ateneo Paraguayo, under the direction of Fernando Oca del Valle, in 1946, and that
the work was written by the great Paraguayan author, but perfected by Oca to bring it
to the stage.

Josefina Pla, as director with Roque Centurión Miranda, and secretary, of the Municipal
School of Performing Arts of Asunción, never acted in his favor, although she
supported him in some difficult moments. But the Municipal School, unlike the Ateneo,
adopted an eclectic attitude and walked between the budgets of Arturo Alsina and Oca
del Valle and the populism of Correa, without overcoming this dichotomy. However,
Josefina Pla and Roque Centurión Miranda, in collaboration, obtained the first prize
from the Ateneo Paraguayo, in 1942, with the work Here nothing has happened, when
Oca del Valle had gotten along with the rectors of this entity shortly after his arrival to
the capital of the Guaraní country.

The Municipal School of Performing Arts brought to the stage some works that linked
with the guidelines of the aforementioned Spanish theater groups before the civil war
and with the creations of exiled authors who premiered in the other capitals of the
Southern Cone. And to prove it, it is enough to look at some of his premieres and
revivals of classics: The Boat Without a Fisherman, The Lady of the Dawn and The
Young Man Who Married a Brave Woman by Alejandro Casona - the second is one of
the first works that the University Theater performed. Chilean with José Ricardo
Morales-, The Altarpiece of Wonders by Cervantes, The Miser by Molière and The
Suspicious Truth by Juan Ruiz de Alarcón. If we add to this that an Inspector Calls by
J. b. Priestley, Pirandello, Arthur Miller, Albert Camus, Ugo Betti and Shaw, among
others, in addition to numerous Paraguayan authors, there is no room to add another
word to what this institution and the work of Fernando Oca del Valle meant in
Paraguayan theater from around the middle of the 20th century, and as laying the
foundations for a future theater. And this work was based on the choice of a repertoire
that was as up-to-date as possible, an innovative stage direction for the Paraguay of
the time, although very marked by the Spanish scene of the 1930s and the Buenos
Aires scene of the 1940s, and, perhaps, the most importantly, the work of training
actors. His work also included theater performances read at the Rotary Club of
Asunción, where the session of Dantas's The Dinner of the Cardinals in 1953 is
remembered.

Oca del Valle took care of the training work of the actors, in such a way that the first
great figures of interpretation in Paraguayan theater learned from his teaching. Some
like Jacinto Herrera and Nelly Prono made their careers in Buenos Aires, with what
achievement meant. In the oral saying of Edda de los Ríos, the former made films and
theater in the Argentine capital, and returned to Paraguay in the 60s, in full decline due
to his alcoholism. However, he completed some theater seasons and was a pioneer
presenter on Paraguayan television until his death in 1969. The second completed in
Buenos Aires with excellent work in theater, film and television. He only returned to
Paraguay on rare occasions with Buenos Aires theater companies or to visit his
relatives. He died in the Argentine capital.

From the cast of the Ateneo Paraguayo of the time of Oca del Valle, an important
company emerged in the development of later popular theater. It is the Báez-Reisofer-
Gómez company. Ernesto Báez, Emigdia Reisofer, Sara Giménez and Carlos Gómez,
after having started with Fernando Oca del Valle and after a not very long period of
seasons in Asunción, left the Ateneo Company and founded the company we have
mentioned. His line abandoned budgets that Oca del Valle disseminated and opted for
popular theater in Jopará and Spanish. Báez was the director, who continued in the
vein of Julio Correa until his death. They performed some sporadic performances in
Buenos Aires, where they did not have much impact, given the local character of this
popular theater.

It is interesting to highlight the figure of Ernesto Báez, because he was the one who
confronted Fernando Oca del Valle, after having been his student, in the fifties, given
the different theatrical conception of both. Báez definitely opted for popular theater,
which was synonymous with disagreement with his teacher. The controversy reached
the newspapers and magazines of the time, although, a few years later, the
disagreements, which reached a personal level, would disappear. In 1959, Ernesto
Báez and his wife Emigdia returned to work as guest artists with the Compañía del
Ateneo for the premiere of the first Paraguayan zarzuela "La Tejedora de Ñandutí" by
Moreno González and Frutos Pane, which had great success. After the death of
Emigdia de Báez, her husband Ernesto, Sara Giménez and Carlos Gómez continued
the work of the company. Except for Carlos Gómez, who continues to perform popular
theater at over eighty years old, all of them have recently died.

Among the actresses, Mercedes Jané stood out. She was the protagonist of the
production of The Boat Without a Fisherman, the most remembered, judging by the
oral testimonies of witnesses, of which our character directed. Jané worked at the
Ateneo for many years, and later founded her own company. He still works on the
scene sporadically, despite his advanced age. As "character actors" of the Ateneo
Paraguayo, Leandro Cacavelos and Azucena Zelaya stood out (both died at the end of
the eighties), who represented the most important titles that Oca del Valle directed in
the fifties, when Ernesto Báez left the company. Zelaya premiered The Lady of the
Dawn in Asunción. Among the youngest actors who joined the company in the fifties,
we must highlight María Sachero, today one of the great Paraguayan actresses, and
Mario Prono. The transfer of the management of the company to both of them was one
of the legacies of Fernando Oca del Valle, once he retired for obscure reasons and
possibly arising from the eternal disputes between Paraguayan writers and artists,
which have persisted forever and to this day. . Sachero and Prono continued the work
of the company and the new productions until approximately the eighties, the decade in
which the cast of the Ateneo Paraguayo definitively disappeared.

Other names of actors in the company deserve to be highlighted, even if they were not
in the foreground: Amador García, Ethel Stark, the Torres brothers, Ninica Segura, etc.
In reality, Fernando Oca del Valle can be considered a teacher-director rather than an
exclusively stage director, given that all those who made up the company were new
actors.

Fernando Oca del Valle is not an excessively remembered figure in the field of current
Paraguayan theater. His reminiscences remain very distant and strange. However, he
was the one who laid the foundations for contemporary Paraguayan theater to present
figures such as Manuel E. b. Argüello, Edda de los Ríos and Gloria Muñoz. Authors,
actors and teachers remember him, but not with the importance he deserves. Possibly,
it did not manage to complete the process of updating Paraguayan theater, which did
not evolve to the new neo-avant-garde currents that emerged in Europe or neighboring
countries in the sixties and seventies. But it provided the necessary pedagogical
channels for a theatrical renewal and, above all, , for the training of actors and
directors. The lack of his scenic treatises and written didactic works is the reason that
prevents us from recognizing his work; a remarkable work by yet another exile from the
fratricidal Spanish civil war in American lands.

THE "INDEPENDENT THEATER" IN PARAGUAY

There is vast information to talk about theater in Paraguay, taking into account the
trajectory it has had in the cultural sphere of our society. However, for reasons of space
I will limit myself to describing only what the "independent theater" movement was, a
movement that really delves into a theater that reflects more directly and with current
language the socio-political-cultural situation of the Paraguay.

Given the number of groups that emerged, those highlighted for their special
contributions to the national scene will be mentioned here.

THE BEGGINING
In the 1950s, when a new trend burst into the Paraguayan theater environment, with
the name "independent theater", a different alternative was presented for theater
workers.

As in other areas of art, this theatrical thought came to Paraguay as a reflection of

artistic movements in neighboring countries, influenced mainly by Argentine, Chilean
and Brazilian virtuosos. In their respective countries, these artists integrated old and
recognized talents into the scene with new values.

The casts, thus formed, oriented their work towards the experimentation of a theater
that proposed innovative forms for new content. This in Paraguay began with factors
often coming from the underdeveloped university theater.

This nascent movement, made up of theater workers (actors, directors, playwrights, set
designers...) focused their interest on observing a repertoire different from the Latin
American costumbrista and traditional Spanish theater that had been done for
decades. They also sought, in this way, to leave the public accustomed only to
attending our first Coliseum, the Municipal Theater, to reach that of parishes and
neighborhoods, generally forgotten.

Thus, the so-called "theater groups" emerged, which differed from the "companies",
whose members were hired according to the needs of each work and had a more
commercial nature. The first, on the other hand, were made up of people with a young
mentality and were generally more stable in groups.

They explored combining artistic expression with content according to the closest and
most immediate needs. Above economic profit, they wanted to express themselves by
following new paths and forms. Regarding the internal organization, they generated
their own resources, generally involving theatrical work (nighttime) with an alternative
work (daytime).

These groups began during the time of the dictatorship of General Stroessner and the
theater they produced had a rebellious nature, which is why most of them were
persecuted, attacked and several of them even disappeared into the hands of the
government machinery (Case of the "Theater Zero", closed by "higher order" before its
premiere)
Several of these groups transcended borders and managed to gain an interesting
space within the Latin American panorama. Thus we can cite the first work framed in
independent theater in 1958, by the Teatro Experimental Asunceño, directed by the
actor and director Tito Jara Román.

This movement is still in force and gained special strength until the Third Festival of the
New Theater (1976), in which repression for political reasons reached an extreme
degree and managed to unleash a true crisis within the groups and members. Later,
the older companies resurfaced and welcomed numerous actors and actresses trained
within independent theater.

With the development of the Itaipú hydroelectric plant, a new economic class emerges,
with more conservative and frivolous tastes in cultural matters.

Among the most important groups that have emerged within independent theater are
the Asunceno Experimental Theater, the Vanguardia Popular Theater, the Teatro
Estudio Libre, Tiempo Ovillo, Teatro Laboratorio, Aty Ñe'e, Pirirí Teatro and the
Paraguay Theater Show, which brings together all of them. them and others, in the so-
called National Theater Shows.

Despite the great difficulties, the most persevering groups continue working to this day;
and a large part of our professional theater movement is made up of actors trained
within the independent theater movement.

THE "ASUNCENO EXPERIMENTAL THEATER"

The theater director, Tito Jara Román, after some studies in Buenos Aires, Argentina,
returned to the country and began the experiment by gathering a group of young
actors, whose ages ranged between eighteen and twenty years old, and decided to
settle with them what would be the "Teatro Experimental Asunceno".

After eight months of rehearsals, on August 23, 1958, the play, "Lawsuit against
strangers" by French author Georges Neveux, premiered in the auditorium of the
Goethe College. It is considered the first work of independent theater. Paraguayan.

Its director, Tito Jara Román, was then twenty-two years old, and had just graduated
from the Municipal School of Performing Arts, then directed by maestro Roque
Centurión Miranda.

Several of the TEA members They were graduates of the same School and their
common goal was to venture into a theater different from the Spanish theater that was
performed in the Municipal Theater, under the direction of Don Fernando Oca Delvalle,
as well as the traditional theater.

From its beginnings, this group took the orientation of independent Argentine theater,
disseminated in Paraguay through the book published by maestro Castagnino and
gifted to Jara Román by the Chilean actor, Fernando Jouseau, who was on tour in
Asunción at that time.

The proposal, somewhat confusing at first, gained clarity with the advice of Julio César
Troche, who was in charge of giving guidelines towards new ways of working in the
theater, unknown at that time by the members.

With the premiere of his first work, the TEA declares: “We seek a theater independent
of any restrictive financial, political or religious commitment, responsible for submerging
theatrical work in vicious interactions. "We want to reach a popular audience, and at
the same time promote all the values that for one reason or another are absent on the
national scene."
The first group was composed of: Elena Visokolán, Gustavo Calderini, Ramón del Río,
William Becker, Carlos Federico Gómez, Chunga Schuartzman, José Antonio Pratt,
Julio Álvarez, Natalia Zeman, Guillermo Schaerer, Julio Alver, Ángel Rubén Flor, Mary
Erma Fleitas , Etelvina Acosta, Liv Goetting, Miguel Ángel D'Angelo, Julio César
Troche and later the sisters Norma and Nanny Barret.

This group enabled new theatrical spaces, such as La Societé La France, the Center
Catalá, the Brazilian Cultural Mission and the Radio Cáritas Auditorium.

The repertoire of works presented includes titles such as: "Lawsuit against strangers",
by Neveux, "The Browning version", by Rattigan, "The glass menagerie", by T.
Williams, "The Moneylender", Josseu; "Miracle in the old market", by Dragún, "The
survivors", by Adler. "The boy and the star", J. Pla; "A certain Judas", by Boh,
"Británico", by Racine, "The Saint and the Pig", Suassuna. "An Inspector Has Arrived"
by Presley, "Spectres" by Ibsen, "Nero" by Racine and "Caligula" by Camus.

These works initially baffled critics, both for the repertoire and for the use of certain
innovative scenic elements, often arising as a result of the lack of economic means
(they eliminated the curtain, economy of scenic elements, use of objects imaginary,
reflectors in the viewer's view). The structure of his staged works was reworked in such
a way that the scenes had a perfect measure, established according to the needs of
the total rhythm (they were generally cut at the "peak" moment).

This group was strongly attacked by the Strom government. Some of its members were
taken prisoner and others had to be exiled from the country.

One of the main contributions of TEA Paraguayan theater was the initiation of young
people into the theatrical field, projecting its seeds to casts that later emerged such as
TPV, Tiempoovillo, TEL, Aty Ne'é among others.

INDEPENDENT GROUPS PROLIFER

Shortly after the appearance of ASD (Teatro Experimental Asunceno, 1958) a series
of groups emerged, which coincided with the desire to search for a different theater and
joined the list of independent theater.

The luckiest ones managed to premiere their works. Others fell by the wayside, given
that that time was particularly difficult for the culture; partly due to the direct repressive
action of General Stroessner's government, and partly due to the lack of economic aid
from public or private companies.

All these groups carried out their work collectively (they rejected star theater, they were
self-financing and the themes of their works fundamentally covered social facets).

Among them we can mention:

EL GALPON THEATER
It was born under the initiative and direction of Josefina Plá, a woman of great
intellectual solvency, originally from the Canary Islands, (Spain). He settled in
Paraguay from a very young age, and definitively inserted himself into the intellectual
movement of this country.

Driven by the desire for an art theater, she conditioned the patio of her house (located
on Unidos Street on the corner of República de Colombia), as a small auditorium, with
the inclusion of a stage, which was then one of the projects more ambitious theatricals.
The work they began to rehearse was "Momento para tres", authored by the
Paraguayan artist and poet, Carlos Colombino. In that cast were the daughters of the
famous ceramist, Laterza Parodi.

Unfortunately this group ended without releasing its first work. However, it left behind
people trained in the performing arts.

CATHOLIC EXPERIMENTAL THEATER

Promoted by the director of the San José School, Father Alonso de las Heras. It
brought together secondary school students (mainly from the "Las Teresas" and "San
José" schools), thus seeking to bring young people closer to acting. It was directed
by José Antonio Pratt Mayans (a new talent who was beginning to venture as a writer
at that time) who came with the experience of having formed the cast "Jóvenes
Católicos".

To start activities they chose the work "Checkmate" by Pablo Rey. The work was not
lucky since they were only able to do a premiere performance, presented to a closed
circle of spectators, in a family home,

MBURICAÓ EXPERIMENTAL THEATER

The work that consolidated this group was "The Passion of Christ", whose idea
emerged seeking to make a representation for the celebrities of Holy Week in the
Tembetary neighborhood, to which part of the cast of the future TEM accidentally
attended as an audience.

The actress and director, Teresita Pesoa, motivated by the idea of continuing with
these productions, brought together a group of actors, among whom at that time were
Rudy Torga, Emilio Barreto and Arturo Fleitas; who continued to work on the topic in a
more elaborate way.

"Our Christ - comments Arturo Fleitas - was conceived from a quite earthly point of
view. He was not a being separated from the human condition, but very committed to it.
A Christ who fought for justice and freedom, already in this world."

During Holy Week this group continued presenting "The Passion", to the point that the
cast was identified with that name.

As a consequence of all this, they later decided to found the Mburicaó Experimental
Theater (TEM).

"For six years we staged that play - says Barreto - taking it to various cities and towns
in the interior, but only during Holy Week. Then we continue with Correa's works. The
evening was our favorite genre, we took popular elements and worked on them with
minimal resources anywhere people needed entertainment. Even our lights were
improvised kerosene lamps."

As a highlight of this group, it is important to highlight the ideological unity that it had.

ANAHÍ EXPERIMENTAL THEATER

Coinciding with the same time, the Anahí Experimental Theater emerged in Villeta (a
city near the capital), whose repertoire was preferably the works in Guaraní by Julio
Correa. These groups, although short-lived, managed to raise concerns and give firm
foundations to their members, many of whom became part of later, more stable casts,
such as the Teatro Popular de Vanguardia and the Teatro Estudio Libre.
AVANT-GARDE POPULAR THEATER
With the appearance of the Avant-garde Popular Theater, we began to talk about a
theater of images, in which mimicry and sounds acquire a prominent value. New
aesthetic proposals are thus formulated on the scene,

The person responsible for the creation of POS It was Oscar Wespel, Argentine by
origin and with notable artistic talents (mime, musician and playwright), supported by
Natalia Zeman, a young talent who was then starting out in the theater.

In principle, this group worked fundamentally with body language, presenting its first
pantomime show in 1964, based on everyday images with a great deal of humor and
reflection, strung together by the delicate thread of an unpredictable Harlequin.

The public, at first, did not fully understand this group, but they were able to give them
the necessary support so that they could continue with other works, such as the farce
recital, "El retablillo de Don Cristóbal", by F. Garcia Lorca "Pyramus and Thisbe", a
fragment of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and "Juan Ene", Wespel's
own creation, among others.

In the same way that the repertoire of works grew, the number of members increased,
and Rufo Medina and Humberto Gulino could be cited among the co-founders (the
latter continued his career uninterruptedly, currently ranking among the best national
actors).

Due to the end of the work contract that Wespel had in Paraguay, in 1965 he returned
to Argentina, delegating the direction of the group to Rudy Torga, who incorporated
works by national authors (Julio Correa and Rivarola Matto) into the repertoire, thus
seeking a theater with greater social content and reach a broader audience.

However, the TPV continued to represent works by Dragún, Jorge Díaz and Rice, "The
Adding Machine", in which Antonio Pecci and Sonia Irrazábal stood out, building
characters of delicate nuances, with a good aesthetic level. With "The Adding Machine"
the theater in Spanish was inaugurated in the room of the Paraguayan American
Center, previously used only for theater performances in English (The Cosmopolitan
Players).

Under the direction of Rudy Torga and the directorial assistance of Antonio Pecci, this
group premiered the first play by Federico García Lorca in Paraguay, "Doña Rosita la
spinella", with scenery by Héctor Benítez Torres, masterfully starring Stella Lamarc.

Trying to gain new audiences, the group performed in schools and universities, most of
the time having to improvise the stage in patios, classrooms, and sports fields. Later,
Pecci took over the direction and began training actors, thus giving rise to the
development of theoretical-practical workshops on acting, body expression, oral
expression, theater literature, makeup and staging.

Farce, Wespel's favorite genre, was taken up by the group, staging "Bonome y el
queso", by Aurelio Ferretti, "The man who became a dog" and "Panchito González", by
Osvaldo Dragún and "El amor de Perlimplín and Belisa in her garden" by F. Garcia
Lorca.

At this time, Antonio Ayala, Silvio Rodas, Alejo Pesoa, Ramón del Río, Ñeco Rabito
and Erenia López joined the group, with whom they share the direction of the poetic-
musical show, "A handful of land." With it they were presented at the Manizalez
Theater Festival (Colombia 1971), this being the first Paraguayan work that
participated in a Latin American festival. In this way, he made his way to other theater
workers who would later repeat his itinerary.
Upon return from Colombia (1972) the TPV He did a joint staging experience with the
"Teatro Parroquial Virgen de la Merced" belonging to Areguá (a nearby town of
Asunción).

The work selected to be performed was Ñandeyara recové, a collective creation about
the life of Christ, based on biblical fragments with speeches by Juan Manuel Marcos,
sound by Mito Sequera and direction by Antonio Pecci. This show was exhibited in
approximately ten towns during Holy Week and had the particularity of the use of
language: the people spoke in Guaraní (one of the official languages of Paraguay, of
indigenous origin) and the soldiers in Spanish.

Later they staged "El Montecalvo", by Jairo Aníbal Niño (Colombian), a tragicomedy
with high anti-war content. This group also ventured into children's theater with "Los
crickets deaf", by Jaime Silva and 'El queso y el salchichón', by Jorge Lillo.

In 1978 the group dissolved due to the difficult political situation prevailing in the
country (dictatorship of General Stroessner), Antonio Pecci continuing his work as a
guest actor in other casts and making his contributions to the national theater
movement to this day from his place as cultural journalist.

FREE STUDIO THEATER

The Teatro Estudio Libre (TEL) cast was founded in 1970 by Rudy Torga (1938-2002),
who also served as its director. It began working in the Radio Cáritas soundstage and
had uninterrupted performing activity for more than 30 years.

The first work presented by the group was "Barranca Abajo" by Florencio Sánchez,
with which it had a successful season at the Paraguayan American Cultural Center.

Since 1971 it was part of the Friendship Mission where works from the national and
Latin American repertoire were preferably presented, in Spanish or Guaraní. They are
characterized by their deep social content and by the search for an aesthetic proposal
with its own profile, which can reconcile the universality of art with the roots of our
culture.

Among the works that characterize this stage we mention some:

• 1971. Short Latin American theater: "Heroic Cantata to Pedro Juan Caballero", by
Ramiro Domínguez (Paraguayan), "The Teacher and The Highway" by Enrique
Buenaventura, (Colombian).

• 1972. "Impalpable Sugar", by Roberto Cañete (Pyo.) "Estimado Prócer", by Humberto

Constantini.

• 1973. "The center forward died at dawn", by Agustín Cuzzani (Argentine).

• 1974. "Crossroads of the Holy Spirit", by José María Rivaro la Matto (Paraguayan).

• 1975. "Morituri: those who are going to die", by Ovidio Benítez Pereira (Paraguayan)

• 1976. "Mbokaja ha'eño", by Néstor Romero Valdovinos (Paraguayan).

• 1976. "Brother Francisco", by Josefina Plá (Hispanic-Paraguayan).

• 1977. "The agony of the hero", by Efraín Enríquez Gamón (Paraguayan).

• 1978. "In the right hand of God the Father" by Enrique Buenaventura (Colombian),
tribute to compatriot, Carlos Miguel Jiménez.

• 1979. "Ñandejara resa'yi", adaptation to the peasant environment and translation into
Guaraní

from "In the right hand...", by E. Bonaventure, by Rudy Torga.

Since 1980, the Teatro Estudio Libre oriented its presentations towards the interior of
the country and articulated its work with urban and rural organizations. It continuously
incorporated acting training and sociocultural animation workshops. They also carried
out research on the roots and "our complex way of being (Nande rekove)."

In this regard, Rudy Torga himself said: "The Teatro Estudio Libre has always tried to
be faithful to the proposal of a theater committed to the life and ideals of an art
emancipated from borrowings and imitations. The path of theater is tortuous. To take a
step you have to fight. And for the cast, the constructive struggle is that which arises in
daily work, with attention concentrated on the country's social movement. A theater that
participates in the struggle with the citizens, and at the same time, allows the citizens to
participate in the theater with their criticism, with their truth, with their inexhaustible
creativity."

THEATER ZERO
In 1969, the Argentinian Ángel Moglia, his wife Hebe Milli and the Paraguayan Adolfo
Ferreiro, from the beginning an excellent group of friends, undertook the first adventure
of forming a theater group that works continuously, a universal theater repertoire. ,
having its own room for that.

The objective was to make good theater that people liked, that was in tune with what
was in the world and that could be economically sustained.

These three young people met through a common friend, José Carlos Rodríguez, who
was Hebe's classmate. Ángel and Hebe came from the experience of the Argentine
Independent Theater and between talks, one day they decided to create in Paraguay,
the first independent theater with a different format than the one that existed at that
time, which was the Teatro Popular de Vanguardia (TPV). ).

From this common friendship, Ángel Moglia and Adolfo Ferreiro joined forces; they
rented a warehouse for headquarters that had been in front of a mechanical workshop,
located on Paraguayo Independiente street almost 14 de Mayo, next to the current
"Zodiac" building, in front of the Military school. They equipped it neatly with Creole
seats (canvas chairs), dressing rooms, ticket booth, lights, and all kinds of
requirements of a room of this category.

Also, there was a plan to house a cinema club, headed by one of the greatest cinema
connoisseurs of the time, Jesús Ruíz Nestosa. And so, working, pushing with great
enthusiasm, the room was set up. The name "Teatro Cero" is due to Ferreiro, who on
one of those afternoons, amid the hustle and bustle of forming the new group,
remembers saying to Moglia "this is really starting from scratch."

The first cast was made up of Ángel Moglia himself, Edgardo Morel (Carmuega), Rudy
Torga, Osvaldo Otazú, Hebe Milli, Ricardo Aldao, Rafael Arriola, Carla Fabri, Silvio
Beltrán. Moglia's assistant was Luís Alberto Frutos. However, there were other
sympathizers who constantly lent their collaboration and help to the group.

The task of opening a private room, in a country that lacked this modality, took them to
great efforts, from putting their own savings at stake and losing them. Apart from this,
of course, all the innumerable twists and turns involved in authorizing the operation of
the room in the Municipality of Asunción, Police, Military School (for neighborhood
reasons) among others. At that time, the supply of actors was minimal, so some were
invited by the director to the acting experience, even resorting to ordinary people on the
street, as was the case of Osvaldo Otazú.

The first play they decided to stage was "Romulus the Great" by Fredierich Durremant.
Previously, Moglia had already directed it in Buenos Aires, where it had great success.
The proposal arose because he considered that it was a very subtle reflection on
power and that, because it was located within a historical context different from the
Paraguayan one, it could escape repression.

Unfortunately the work could not be released. Only a preview function was held, which
was attended by the president of the Municipal Board, Dr. Honorio Campuzano,
journalists and friends, mixed with regime spies. The premiere had to be the next day
at 8 p.m. It did not happen, that morning they arrested Ángel Moglia and his wife, giving
him forty-eight hours to leave the country.

The friendship between Moglia, his wife and Ferreiro, however, continues from a
distance, and remains firm for several decades, until the death of the former in the city
of Corrientes, remembering Paraguay as his best years, despite everything.

All kinds of efforts were made to reopen the theater, but there was nothing but silence,
walls and cowardice of all kinds. Finally the premises were returned and the equipment
was scattered everywhere. Thus, the first great dream of a hall for special, sensitive
and intelligent spectators concluded. Unfortunately, since this threatened the interests
of the Strom regime.

WEATHER
This group was born in 1969, created by Ricardo Migliorisi and Agustín Núñez, the
latter had just arrived from taking classes at the Rio de Janeiro Theater Conservatory,
where he approached the method of J. Grotowsky. To form the group, they linked
colleagues from the Faculty of Architecture of the National University of Asunción with
those who had previously tried to form other groups dedicated to the search for an
expression of an aesthetic language more in line with those years.

They were Nucky Walder, Teresa González Meyer, Teresa Bolla, María Helena Gill,
Gloria Muñoz, Carlos Pompa, Sidney de Mello, Cristina Machaín, Julio Saldaña and
Julio González.

Later, it became necessary to incorporate new members from outside that Faculty,
which is why it became an independent group. This is how the integration of Pelusa
Brítez, Raquel Rojas, Tony Carmona takes place; Elisa Godoy, Lourdes Zaracho,
Robert Leigth, Graciela Amarilla, Eugenio Fernández, Raúl Reissner, Tilly Schulz,
Carlos Troche and Chino Ferreira.

At that time, the challenge of finding our own language and definition as a group arose.
Thus began a period of searching in different theatrical forms.

At that time, the young Brazilian theater director Marcio Sgreccia gave guidelines,
created concerns and provided techniques so that the group could begin its journey.

Jerzy Grotowsky's "Declaration of Principles" gave the initial impetus to open up to new
expressive sources (dance, mime, sound world, acrobatics, martial arts) taking from
each what they considered could serve to develop a theatrical aesthetic language.

The first work of this group was Curriculum vitae, an adaptation of "The Strange
Horseman" by Michel de Ghelderode. The play was framed within the theater of
cruelty, and for the first time, with the rupture of the stage space, there is a proposal to
actively integrate the public into the show.
The second performance they presented was based on two short works; "The
Condemned Man's Woman", by Henry Monnier, and "Prayer", by Fernando Arrabal, for
which they turned to Expressionism as a source.

The desire to share with the children's world occurs with the work "The magical island
of the storyteller", a creation of the group in which the public actively participates with
actions and opinions in its development.

In the midst of the military dictatorship, they felt the commitment to unmask repressive
elements of the regime, thus arose "The Sketch of Hell", made up of fragments of The
Balcony, by Jean Genet, "The Orgastula", by the Chilean author Jorge Díaz and
"Torture as a of fine arts", by José Antonio Pratt Mayans (Paraguayan). These works
were adapted and recreated, preserving the line and spirit of the authors.

At that time, the phenomenon of collective creation emerged in Latin America. The
group ventured into it seeking to capture the world of rituals, customs, songs, music
and indigenous dances of the country, as well as its problems.

Thus "Story of one more death" was revealed; result of scientific and field work within
the indigenous cosmogony, showing the destruction and extermination of one culture
over the other. Starting from this piece, it was reworked and resulted in "What vipers
are ashamed of." Both works were coordinated by Tony Carmona. The Paraguay
Theater Show was held in 1973, and this work was selected to represent Paraguay at
the International Theater Festival of Manizales, Colombia.

Afterwards, the group toured much of America, participating in six other festivals,
teaching courses, taking classes and training.

While on tour he premiered the children's play "Alice in a Country of Kings and
Queens"; adaptation of the works Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking
Glass, by Lewis Caroll, made by Tony Carmona. In Medellín, Colombia, the group
trained an adaptation of "The Little Prince" by A. From Saint-Exupery.

As a result of the tour, specific interests arose among the members in the different
ways of doing theater. Some wish to continue researching stage language, others
specialize in children's theater, rural theater, teaching, acting and directing shows. This
is how they make the decision to separate in a time and place. That time is November
1974, and the place, Panama. Thus its members separated in great harmony,
and for a time developed activities in America and Europe. Currently, most of its
members are based in Paraguay, and maintain close work and friendship ties to this
day.

Among other awards, this group has been highlighted as the "Best staging" (1970 -
Críticos de Asunción - Paraguay) and with the "Mola de oro" (Panama Theater Festival
-1974).

Tiempoovillo bequeathed to the national theater an immense contribution in terms of

the recreation and use of the stage space, as well as the notable modifications that
occurred in acting training based on his proposals.

THEATER LABORATORY
When the members of the Tiempoovillo group went on an international tour in 1973,
three of its members (Gloria Muñoz, Robert Leigh and Carlos Troche), for various
reasons, remained in Paraguay. They decided to form a new group, which in some way
continued investigating stage language.
This resulted in the Laboratory Theater, which placed main emphasis on developing a
type of expression that reflects the society and reality that was experienced in the
country (Stronista dictatorship).

The group was made up of Adolfo Escobar, Carlos Cristaldo, May Obregón, Santiago
Leguizamón, Ernesto Heisecke, Mirtha García, Carmen Muñoz and Darío Elías.

They did not have a permanent director. That is, each member of the group, at a
certain time, directed some part of the work, after having discussed and defined each
scene.

The first piece they put on stage was made up of fragments of Moliére's works and was
sponsored by the French Embassy in Paraguay. It was called "Tonight you improvise
improvising", and it was performed in a circular fashion in the gardens of the Alliance
Française.

The second work they premiered was "Fuenteovejuna" in a very free version and
adapting it to the political circumstances the country was going through.

Candlelight was used for lighting and the costumes were extremely simple and uniform,
in such a way that each character, the actor or actress, incorporated superimposed
elements according to the situations and characters.

Very soon, the political moment became critical and greatly affected the life of the
group. Only a few members remained who continued the work zealously. Thus they
staged "The Orgy", by the Colombian Enrique Buenaventura. The works presented,
initially in theater spaces, were then performed in different places in Asunción and in
the interior of the country.

The main characteristic of Teatro Laboratorio was to combine an innovative theatrical

language with a deep political content.
ATY ÑE"E
Aty Ñe'e was formed at the end of 1974 with the return of Raquel Rojas to Paraguay,
after a Latin American tour with Tiempoovillo and a stay in Buenos Aires, where she
carried out a study internship and self-exile in the hard years of the military dictatorship.
in both countries.

The main members came from independent theater: Arturo Pereira, Ramón del Río,
Blas Alcaraz, May Obregón, Cristina Gunsset and Hermes Jiménez. Later, upon
returning from Buenos Aires, Antonio Carmona and later Alcibiades González del Valle
joined. In Coronel Oviedo, Jorge Brítez, a young conjurer with histrionic skills, joins in,
and then the young actor Wal Mayans, completing the basic cast that was sustained
during the first seven years of intense work of tours and performances throughout the
interior, companies and towns.

The objective was to make theater for rural areas, in an art of popular reach, which in
turn implies the search for a language rooted in Paraguayan popular culture. This
objective is not as simple as it seems, nor is its proposition enough to justify it
artistically.

The group went to the countryside, to get rid of ideological prejudices and

recognize oneself in the other, in the peasant, in the indigenous, in the young people
from the interior of the country, to then attempt an aesthetic recomposition of one's own
language with local and universal roots.

Also joining in other stages: Humberto Gulino, Guillermo Schaerer, and Juan Ramón
Benítez, Emiliano and Antonio González, Pachín Centurión, artists with a long history.

OF THE WORK METHOD

"We started from the Latin American method, from trial and error, and we learned. We
applied different techniques, from the tour we learned the fundamental bases of Latin
American theater and we used them. Experiences from the Libre Teatro Libre of
Córdoba, the Teatro Experimental de Cali and Enrique Buenaventura, the Teatro
Campesino Mexicano and Los Mascarones, which helped us as a starting point. Then
we were nourished by popular European theater, getting to know the Comedy of Art,
Darío Fo's Theater and the North American Bread and Puppet, which gave us the
flavor and technique of a live, critical, but always fun popular theater," says Raquel.
Rojas, founder and co-stage director of the works staged by Aty Ñe'e.

TOURS THROUGH RURAL COMMUNITIES

With a van and mobile theater equipment sponsored by the Catholic University of
Asunción, the Interamerican Foundation of the North American Congress and the
Institute of Communication and Arts, they toured almost the entire eastern region,
establishing work residence for months, in some specific areas of the country: Coronel
Oviedo, Concepción, Pedro Juan Caballero, Villarrica, Caazapá, Encarnación and
Caaguazú. In Caazapá they joined the work of peasant promotion with the Pío who
shared their work of reflection and shows. "Over time we became the community's oral
newspaper. People looked for us to tell us what was happening and asked us to
represent them in our works, since they felt our presence as part of them." The
"Evening" type shows of theater and music were shared with the artists of the
communities, in an interaction so rich that the public appreciated and rewarded with
their applause and laughter. Local artists gained value by sharing the stage with the
Aty Ñe'e group due to the ostracism and lack of communication in which they lived
during the hard times of the dictatorship.
THE RESURRECTION OF THE EVENINGS
The evenings were the theatrical form, type of comedy steps, that became very
popular in the 1920s. In it, accomplished musicians such as Félix Fernández, Darío
Gómez Serrato, Agustín Barboza, Emilio Bobadilla Cáceres and Diosnel Chase,
performed alongside the actors, Dora del Cerro, Máxima Lugo, the Castillo sisters and
performed satirical burlesque sketches that concluded with music and dances This
structure was inspired by the Lope de Rueda and Entremeses Theater of the Classical
Spanish Theatre.

For the rebirth of the work "Velada" in the 70s, the Aty Ñee Group carried out a live
investigation with the older artists, interviewing them and sharing with them some
evenings to remember the old times. From there - in the Buena Vista Social Club style -
the new repertoire was built, inspired by that peculiar way of doing theater, with other
updated content and techniques that resulted in one of the most significant works of the
Paraguayan Theater: "Velada", with dramaturgy by Alcibiades González Delvalle and
research, assembly and staging by the Aty Ñee Group.

It was performed at the Cine Teatro España, specially recovered for that season, and
for fifteen days the room was filled with popular audiences, 600 spectators per night,
generating extraordinary acceptance for an independent and critical play in the midst of
the dictatorship.

This was the group's great "sin" in the eyes of the regime, and since then the
possibilities of going out into the countryside were closed, they were controlled and
their steps recorded in the dark investigations of the dictatorship. It was dangerous for
a critical theater to be popular and even more so for it to expand its ideas and
language.

At the beginning of the eighties, Raquel Rojas received an ultimatum that, "in order to
preserve the integrity of the group, it should no longer go to Caazapá, nor to other
tours." The work was concentrated in Asunción, associating with Edda de los Ríos in
"La Farándula", on the Railway, carrying out works that are cited below:

- "The concert of the picardies with maestro Perú Rima"

- "Velada", Masquerade in troubled river", adaptation of Volpone by Ben Jhonson by

Tony Carmona.

- "Fishing Night", adaptation of Fishing, by Bertolt Brecht and "From War to Cabaret",
adaptation of the play Elephant Cub by Bertolt Brecht.

All of them directed by Raquel Rojas and Tony Carmona, with music by Arturo Pereira,
with Emiliano and Antonio González and others. In addition to "Yvy reñoi", based on a
work by Julio Correa and works with indigenous themes with the support of Miguel
Chase Sardi and the Marandu Project.

After directing "De la Guerra al Cabaret", Raquel Rojas traveled to Italy invited by the
Italo Latin American Institute. The dictatorship cut off the scholarship after a month, the
director traveled to Milan and joined the Darío Fo Commune, where the solidarity of the
group sheltered her and she remains there, staying for three years, in northern Italy. He
attended the Piccolo Teatro School in Milan and attended productions of Strelher: La
grande Magia and El alma Buona de Sezuan. Upon her return to the country, in 1984,
Rojas was taken to political prison "for subversive activities related to culture and
nascent feminism in Paraguay."

The group that remained in Asunción under the direction of Arturo Pereira, Wal
Mayans, Jorge Brítez, Pachín Centurión, which is joined by other young actors and
actresses - Carlos Cáceres, Amado Cardozo and Rubén who perform a vast repertoire
in the same vein of theatrical work , this time concentrated in the suburban
neighborhoods of Asunción. At this stage, with emphasis on music, theater continued
to be critical, until 1988 when Cristina Gunssett held workshops with young people and
children, expanding theatrical activity with the same passion that began more than a
decade ago.

All the members of Aty Ñee, even today, are dedicated to theater and say they have
yet to write a common story that bears witness to those years of tours, theater and
political poetics.

PIRIRÍ THEATER
Pirirí is a Guaraní word that means life, enthusiasm, joy, raised in the theater was the
idea of a group of actors who, coming from different groups and experiences, came
together in 1979, with the common ideal of searching for new ways or paths. to
communicate ideas and related thoughts. The founders were Erenia López, Antonio
Ayala, Ñeco Rabito and Emilio Barreto. This group over time became numerous, since
it operated with workshops and permanent acting training courses.

The line they worked on the most was theater for children, which generally combined
text and acting with colorful songs and dances. The first play presented was "Una Hora
al Reverse" (released on July 20, 1980), and it remained on the billboard for five years.

They also dramatized a series of stories in a show called Pirirí tales. Among other
works for children released by them we could mention "The Party of the Dolls", by
Carlos José Reyes, Platero y yo, by Juan Ramón Jiménez and "Open the field, Don
Quixote of La Mancha is coming", by the Argentine writer Adela Bass. , "The rogue
dream went for a walk" and "Catch the cuckoo."

They venture into the field of adult shows with "El spray tragalotodo", by Erenia López
and "If it rained everything would be ruined."

A special characteristic of the group was the use of music, not simply as
accompaniment but as another character in the work.

After several years of permanent activity in Asunción and in the interior, each of the
members became interested in other forms of theater and in acquiring experiences with
other groups. Thus little by little the group came to an end. However, among other
things, we must recognize the valuable work he did in approaching and training young
talents.

ROYAL THEATER GROUP

A particular theater group stands out for its objectives, trajectory and chosen
repertoire. It is the Royal Theater Group.

Going back to its origins, we can start from Roger Bernalve, who after having theatrical
experiences in various casts, even in the interior of the country, decided to form a
theater group while in Asunción. He previously managed to bring together some actors
in the Vega Bernal-Valois Giménez Company, which lasted about four years, touring
the country with the play "Apuro ha Ñemondy'i", of his own authorship.

It was a time of rich experiences and anecdotes that were kept in the chest of memory,
which would later be opened to motivate and base the creation of a stable cast.

Roger Bernalve's firm mission to do theater was stronger, and back in 1979, even
before graduating as a theater actor at the Municipal School of Performing Arts,
"Roque Centurión Miranda", he was propelled towards more qualified horizons on the
stage. , and he felt capable of navigating the sea of theatrical art, directing his own ship
in search of successful ports.

On August 25 of that year, he made the decision to embark on the difficult task of
directing a group of actors who had recently graduated from the School of Performing
Arts and others who had an inclination towards theater; It crystallized a long-cherished
dream: having its own cast.

The first members of the new cast were: Misael Camilo, Cristina Alderete, Bonifacio
Alfonso, Víctor Vega, Alba Cano, Kuki Giménez, Abdón Maidana, Mereki Notario and
others who succeeded them because the cast could never count on stable actors, for
the economic precariousness with which it operates to this day. It also happens that as
time goes by, some single members decide to get married and leave the theater,
others get a well-paid job and have no time left to dedicate themselves to theatrical art,
and in the worst case, some actors go to others. casts where they obtain economic
improvement.

As at that time, everything was an illusion of bringing new ideas to fruition, mixed with
the purest and most beautiful thoughts in search of something better and different,
Roger Bernalve chose something superior to the common for the name of his cast,
designating it as "Royal Group of Theater", which is still valid in the theatrical field to
this day.

Since its foundation, it has accommodated and provided opportunities for graduates of
the School of Performing Arts and some fans who like the art of stage performances.
They meet with them at the Immaculate Conception Parish, located on 7th. Projected
and August 15 of our capital, supported by the parish authorities.

On the date mentioned above, Roger Bernalve's dream came true.

The new group collaborated with the catechists of the parish to attract children, young
people and adults towards the knowledge of God, because considering the impact that
theater has on the spectator and on the actors, it was an important tool for catechizing.
In addition, the Royal Theater Group represented sketches and plays in artistic spaces
called "Evenings", which were very popular at that time.

In principle, the Royal Theater Group considered the need to move away from religious
theater to focus on the representation of national works and foreign authors, including
religious works with scripts based on writings from the Bible and the catechism.

Over time, it became more established and specialized in staging popular national and
traditional works, as Bernalve realized that these themes have greater acceptance by
the public, in addition to better understanding and capturing the message of the works;
Such is the case of Julio Correa's theatrical creations, which can be performed
anywhere in the country and before any social stratum, with the possibility of fully
understanding the theatrical piece.

Let us highlight that this type of work that is put up for public consideration is highly
requested in Asunción, and in the interior of the country.

Among its main objectives we can mention:

* Make the theater reach the most unusual corners of the capital and interior, giving the
population lacking economic resources the possibility of accessing a quality artistic
show.

* Take advantage of all the social, cultural and alternative spaces of Greater Asunción
and the interior: Clubs, civil associations, neighborhood commissions, community and
municipal centers, parish centers, educational and sports institutions, etc.
* Provide young people and adults with limited resources with healthy moments of
recreation, fun and learning, in a cultural and educational context, thus promoting
social communication and collective entertainment.

* Provide the possibility of enjoying a unique event for them, enjoying an experience
that is not compared to the consumption of television products, mostly "canned" and
with purely commercial content, totally different from the art of the tables that transmits
themes of character. human where reflection is motivated and open the mind in search
of Inspiration.

* Return the theater to its itinerant characteristic, as they did in past times with the
famous "Veladas" and other popular works: José L. Melgarejo, Máxima Lugo, The
Sisters Dora and Elva del Cerro, Diosnel Chase, Julio Correa, Félix Fernández,
Ernesto Báez, Carlos Gómez, Los Compadres - César Álvarez Blanco and Rafael
Rojas Doria, and many other greats of the Paraguayan Popular Theater.

* Motivate in young people an interest that allows them to relate their vocation to artistic
creation, potentially awakening future playwrights, actors, set designers, costume
designers and even theater directors.

* Increase the development of an audience with social sensitivity, which demonstrates

interest in artistic creation, not only as a means of distraction but as a channel to
transmit our cultural identity, in addition to using it as a means of aesthetic expression.

* Stimulate the strengthening of essential skills in every society such as expression

before others and the ability to listen to those who express opinions, accepting diverse
points of view in the perception of a theatrical experience.

* Engage community leaders in the cultural task, in order to make the most of the
resources of theatrical expressions for the benefit of the comprehensive orientation of
their respective communities.

Actors and actresses of excellent professional quality passed through this group, such
as: Blanca Navarro, Carlos Gómez, Katty Pacuá, Luis D'oliveira, Manuel Wilder, María
Luisa Garayo, Matías Martínez, Roger Bernalve, Silvania Granada and Silvio Benítez,
among many others. To date, the performance has more than thirty works mounted,
among which we can highlight: "Apuro Ha Ñemondy'í", by Roger Bernalve. "Request
for Marriage", by Anton Chekhov. "The Great Solution", by Augusto Roa Bastos in a
version by Gardes Gardez; "Barabbas," by Dorothy Clarke Wilson; "Mba'eve ÿrehe", by
Josefina Plá / Roque Centurión Miranda; "Ñanemba'érã'ÿ", by Julio Correa; "Paye", a
farce version by Erenia López of the work of Ovidio Benítez Pereira; "Paraguayan
Evenings", by Roger Bernalve; "Karai Ulogio", Roger Bernalve's version of the work of
Julio Correa; "Ñandejára", "Mboriahu ha la Muerte", popular version adapted to
Guarani by Roger Bernalve based on the story by Tomás Carrasquill.

Also mentioned are "Mbokaja Ha'eño", Roger Bernalve's version of the work of Néstor
Romero Valdovinos; "La Babosa", version of the homonymous novel by Gabriel
Casaccia by Ovidio Benítez Pereira, version in jopará by Roger Bernalve.

The main contributions to the national theater include:

- Possibility of providing professional shows to the Paraguayan public, taking them on

an itinerant basis.

- The validity for 28 years in the theatrical work, strengthening and promoting
Paraguayan popular theater.
- Works represented in Guaraní or Jopará, being a means to preserve and disseminate
our cultural identity.

- National representation in international festivals in Argentina and the Three Borders.

- Provide the possibility, to nearly 100 artists, of forming a national company that works
for popular culture.

- Reach thousands of students every year, and make possible, for the first time, the
wonderful experience of living theater for many of them.

Currently (2007) the group is made up of: Manuel Wilder, Katty Pacuá, María Luisa
Garayo, Roger Bernalve, José María Díaz, Silvio Benítez, Fernando Fleitas, Matías
Martínez, Estebar Martínez, Misael Camilo, Ruth Ferreira, Katia García, Aida Luz
Bracho, Leonardo Nachajón, Derlis Villalba, Julián Bordón, César Fernández, Nestor
Castillo, Jorge Verón.
CHE BURRITO
This cast was born with the union of a group of young people who actively participated
in the fight for land that took place in 1994, in San José, Lambaré (a town near
Asunción).

Later, in 1996, they adopted a form of stable community theater, under the name "Che
Burrito", focusing their efforts on making a theater that raises popular themes, based
mainly on texts by the playwright Moncho Azuaga, known in the field for his particular
handling and critic of humor, as well as for the excellent use of Guaraní, Yopará or
Spanish, according to the socio-political-cultural profile of his characters.

Lambaré is a town that during the first half of the last century was characterized by
being the place where the "burreras" resided; women who, riding on donkeys, visited
the neighborhoods of Asunción offering fruits, meat and vegetables for sale. The
donkey was his indispensable element of locomotion to carry out his work.

This group is defined by being basically made up of young people with social concerns,
in addition to artistic ones. Among its directors we can mention Willy Segovia, Mario
Toñánez, Mabel Cisterna, Roberto González, to name some of them.

An important piece of this mechanism is Moncho Azuaga, whose real name is Ramón
Lezcano Sosa. Since its inception, he has been the intellectual advisor of the group, in
addition to being a prominent poet, playwright, narrator, lawyer and philosophy
graduate.

On several occasions he acted as director, although he defines himself more as a

questioner, guide or coordinator of the group.

Among the main works staged by the group we can mention:

-"Criaditas SRL".

-"Crazy Horse"

- "Children and dogs are prohibited in the Plaza."

-"Tuku Ñemondy'i."

All by Azuaga. They have also staged a countless number of short theatrical actions
taking popular characters that for one reason or another became relevant at the
different times in which they were brought to the stage, such as "Peru Rimá", "Ñande
Pesebre", "Ñande Intendente".

Rigoberto González, Francisco Álvarez, Francisca Fouz, Marcelo González, Rodrigo

Sosa, Diego Echauri, Leticia Sosa, Mario Zárate, Christian Villalba and Eduardo
Fariña, among others, were part of the cast.
THE MOBILE THEATER
In recent years, there is a group that has been characterized by its constant activity as
well as by the permanent offer of acting workshops. La Móvil Teatro, created by Miguel
Gómez and accompanied since its beginnings by Dany Centurión.

The exploration of stage language, with emphasis on the body, has been a constant.

This group takes Artaud and Grotowky as basic sources, to investigate scenic
possibilities in line with our environment.

In each of the venues, they always present small-format works, which are very well
received, especially by young audiences.

Among his most notable works we can mention:

- "Goiburu"

- "birds"

- "Bruna"

- "Little Dragon"

All of them by Miguel Gómez.

Currently (2007) "El Malamor", also by Gómez, is on the billboard.

The group has also successfully ventured into plays for children.

Among the actors and actresses who acted in his works we can mention Ever Enciso,
Nataly Valenzuela; Anahí Chamorro, Fernando Martínez, Aldo Calíbrese; Hugo
Robles, Jork Aveiro, Iván Allende, Mariel Von Novak, Ariel Galeano among others.
HARLEQUIN THEATER
It was founded by José Luis Ardissone (actor, director, set designer and costume
designer) in 1982, when he decided to refurbish an old warehouse, which had once
been a nightclub, and turn it into a theater room.

From that moment on, it has maintained constant activity, not only in staging plays, but
also in terms of acting training school, always aiming to develop activities that turn it
into a cultural center serving the community.

The extensive repertoire, with more than one hundred and twenty works premiered
over more than twenty years, is quite eclectic in that it went from good popular theater
to the representation of great classics.

Among his most notable works we can name:

- "The House of Bernarda Alba", by F, García Lorca

- "The Bourgeois Gentleman", by Moliére

- "The Trojan Women", by Euripedes

- "Mother Courage", by B. Brecht

- "The cry of Luisón", Alcibiades González Delvalle

- "Death of a Salesman", by A. Miller

- "Hamlet", by Shakespeare

- "The Diary of Anne Frank", Francis Goodrich and Albert Hackett

- "Conversations after a funeral", by Jazmina Reza.

- "Doña Ramona", by Víctor Manuel Leites

- "Aeroplanes", Carlos Gorostiza

- "Nona", Roberto Cossa

- "The Cherry Orchard", by Anton Chekhov

- "He came back one night", by Eduardo Rovner

- "The land without evil", by A. Roa Bastos, world premiere

- "Mansion of old times", by José Luís Ardissone

- "Palma... from Petit Boulevard to Lido Bar", by J. L. Ardissoni

- "Son of Man", by Augusto Roa Bastos in version by Carlos Manuel Varela

- "Burning Patience", by Antonio Skármeta

It has been the group that has hired the most prestigious foreign directors (Carlos
Aguilera, Nelly Goitiño, Júver Salcedo from Uruguay; Ricardo Talesnik and Omar
Ottomani from Argentina, Alain Gautré and Laurent Vaché from France) as well as
renowned technicians and plastic artists. trajectory (Carlos Torres and Nelson
Mancebo from Uruguay, Carlos Colombino and Ricardo Migliorisi from Paraguay) for
advice regarding visualization.

For the quality of their shows, they received on several occasions the highest
distinctions that reward theatrical work in Paraguay. Great national and international
figures also paraded on its stage.

He participated in festivals such as Córdoba (Argentina), Antofagasta, Valparaíso and

Puerto Montt (Chile), Londrinas and Corumbá (Brazil), Montevideo (Uruguay), La Paz
and Santa Cruz (Bolivia) and Oporto (Portugal).

He was the organizer of the First May International Theater Festival in Asunción (May
1989) with the presence of 22 groups from American countries and several directors,
playwrights and theater scholars.

It continues to carry out theatrical activities with children, adolescents and adults, thus
becoming the only group that has remained in constant activity to this day for twenty-
five years (2007).

The "Students to the Theater" program annually brings around 25,000 young people to
its theatrical performances and they are widely illustrated about authors and other
aspects that make up the work presented.

ULTRAPORTABLE THEATER
This group was born from the union of the theater artists Tito Chamorro (director),
Orlando Amarilla and Jesús Pérez (actors), Alberto Castillo (assistant director) and the
visual artist, Luís Cogliolo.

Its director, a graduate of the Municipal School of Performing Arts, later took courses
with other important Paraguayan and foreign directors. He was awarded a scholarship
to the United States, where he managed to join the theater movement in that country.

Upon his return, he premiered with the founding team "La secreto obscenidad de cada
día", by Marco Antonio de la Parra (1988). The work was considered by the newspaper
ABC Color as "The best performance of the year."

It was a group that was characterized by its constant search and creativity. They
started from realistic texts and reworked them, looking for a particular way of putting a
play on stage.

Tito Chamarro commented: "It is difficult to synthesize what I do. I am always

questioning myself, I never set parameters for myself. The thing is that when we start
rehearsing a piece we never know what we are going to do. In each proposal we make
a fusion of several styles. We take what serves us, according to our way of expressing
ourselves, from diving into many other ways.”

Later, Miryam Sienra, Alejandra Siquot, Jorge Báez, Beto Ayala, Humberto Gulino and
Alicia Guerra, to name the most important ones, joined the group.

Other works staged by Ultraportátil were "King Kong Palace" and "The Desire of Every
Citizen", by Marco Antonio de la Parra; “The Station", "Open Couple", both by Darío Fo
and "Death and the Maiden", by Darío Dorffman.

Ultraportátil was characterized by always working on the scenographic part with plastic
artists who sought to capture innovative forms in their scenic devices.

THEATER OF THE ECLIPSE

In 1994, three particularly talented young people came together to create the Teatro
del Eclipse group. They came from dance and acting and were Alejandra Siquot, Beto
Ayala and Jorge Báez. Representing Paraguay at the International Theater Festival in
Sucre and Potosí (Bolivia), the group presented itself under the name Grupo Colectivo
de Paraguay. The experience left an important mark on the members.

It was the first presentation of their works on international stages and that one was
particularly special, since the cultural event accompanied one of the most important
eclipses of that decade and that was witnessed and experienced by the members of
the collective from the incredible Bolivian city of Potosí, the same day as the last
presentation of the group's work at said event.

For this reason, the symbol of the eclipse was taken as a phenomenon of encounter,
crossing, mixing to reverse what was so impressive to the spectators. The objective
had been established for the group with that symbol of encounter to generate a
particular light, to define what would be the search for its own scenic language from
which to express its opinion and thus generate, from theater, dance, visual arts and
encounter from other artistic disciplines, the form of expression that would define them.

The group's first works were part of other shows where the members of the Teatro del
Eclipse were invited as independent creators, as in the case of the Theater Week
celebration, where El Bolero (the first theatrical action generated by the group) would
mark the first creative meeting between the three members. The show Aguas y Más
Aguas by the contemporary dance company Espacio Tres called for the second time
for the group members to participate as guest creators. This is how Los Lavados
emerged; second short piece of the group. The cycle of this first stage closed with El
Rastro, the third short piece created for the show, Plastic Arts in Motion, by the dancer
and choreographer Dominique von Thuemen.

These three short pieces make up the group's first show called Three Theatrical
Actions. The objective was clear: Mark the beginning with creations with which the
members identified thematically and aesthetically.

As almost always happens in the paths of art, this meant a risk for them; but the
objective was defined: to express oneself with conviction and at the same time accept
the responsibility of developing one's own language.

To the knowledge of dance and theater, the invaluable contribution of the plastic artist,
Gustavo Benítez, the fourth member of the group, was soon added, who notably
cooperated in the management and collaboration regarding the visual and conceptual
seal of the works.

"La Polvareda" emerged as a second work, which is an attempt to explore from

memories, memory and roots. This time, the actor Héctor Micó joined them. With this
work they achieved great success with regard to critics and the public. It was his first
piece, 55 minutes long, and the development involved an extensive study of the
history, poetry, music, traditions and memories of Paraguay; This implied the group's
emotional connection with the country.

In 2000, they received an invitation to present this work at Tulane University (New
Orleans, United States of America). For that opportunity, the one-person version of it
was prepared, performed by Beto Ayala, which was worthy of an excellent review by
the Ecuadorian writer, Gabriela Alemán,

The third and last show of this group was created in 1997, and was "Pasajero". It
marked a turn and a new challenge for the group. A new visual and thematic concept is
proposed in it: Poetry and music marked the inspirations of the three parts that it
included: "Of that garment", "Strange way of life" and "Breakfast".

The aforementioned pieces continued to be presented on different and diverse

occasions until today. They were five years of great responsibility and hard work.
Creating, producing, directing, representing and sustaining the group's creations were
invaluable experiences and lessons in the professional life of each of the members.

This cast knew how to direct the sustained and elaborate work of the collaboration of
friends, colleagues and Paraguayan professionals, always present in the creation and
production of the group's works.

"El Teatro del Eclipse" made an important contribution to the growth of local theater,
resorting to the integration of artistic disciplines, and always offering a different way of
expressing opinions on stage. One more tip of the ball. One more look at the human
condition. The group, from its beginnings, opted to offer proposals in the diversity of
points of view, offering the viewer various options, and they fully achieved it.

THE THEATER RESEARCH AND DISSEMINATION CENTER

Founded in 1990, when three former members of the Tiempoovillo group met again in
Paraguay: Ricardo Migliorisi (considered by many the most outstanding plastic artist in
the medium: also an actor, set designer and costume designer), Gloria Muñoz
(playwright and educational psychologist) and Agustín Núñez (actor, director,
photographer, set designer and playwright).

It aims to work in three areas:

1. The training of actors and theater personnel, within a new methodology where each
individual determines their own acting style. The teacher, in this case, is a simple
questioner, guide, creator of concerns. To do so, it relies on El Estudio, which, at the
end of the degree, grants the title of actor/actress recognized by the Ministry of
Education and Culture.

2. The Documentation Center, with an extensive archive of plays and videos on notable
national and international productions, thus trying to break the "Mediterraneanness"
that constantly threatens us.

3. The staging of theatrical works, creating a meeting space between artists with a
recognized career with the new values of performing art.

Among his most notable works is the world premiere of "Yo El Supremo", by the
renowned Cervantes Award-winning author, Augusto Roa Bastos, which has received
the best national and international reviews.

The group has ventured into various forms of theater, trying to integrate other artistic
disciplines into theater. This is how "Amargo" by Agustín Núñez emerges, a work with
non-verbal language that is possibly the most performed national piece outside of
Paraguay.

Among his most successful works is "The Queen of the Radio", by José Saffioti Fílho;
"Son of man", version of stories by Augusto Roa Bastos made by Agustín Núñez; "The
Divine Comedy of Columbus", by Gloria Muñoz, "Lives and Death of Chirito Aldama",
by Juan Bautista Rivarola Matto and "108 and a Burnt", by Agustín Núñez.

Actors such as Carlos Piñanez, Mirtha Villalba, Hernán Melgarejo, Natalia Nebbia,
Ramón del Río, Orlando Amarilla participated in the staging of the works; Jesús Pérez,
Jorge Ramos, Deyana Urunaga, Mario Santander, Pablo Buder, Griselda Unzaín,
Jaime Flórez, Ronald Paéz, Roberto Cardozo, Vivi Meza, Alice Arce, Announcement
Galeano, Liber Fernández, Julio Saldaña, Mario de Brix, Liza Bogado, Roberto
Maldonado, Silvana Ríal, Laura Ferreira, Graciela Martínez, Maura Sánchez, Bettina
Taborda; Norma Codas, Ever Enciso, Natalia Valenzuela and others.
Since 1998, he renovated an old downtown apartment in which small-format works for
twenty-five spectators are presented uninterruptedly, converting the entire house into
different performing spaces, where the El Estudio Acting and Directing School
operates, its director being Agustín Núñez and academic director, Carlos Piñanez.

Both the group and the director, Agustín Núñez, have been winners of numerous
national and international awards. The Theater Research and Dissemination Center
continues to carry out its work to this day.

ANCESTRAL THEATER
This group was created by graduates of the Municipal Theater School, "Roque
Centurión Miranda", who at the end of their studies decided to continue working
together since they had been doing so for a long time and thus, generate their own
projects, due to the few job options.

In this way they had a source of economic income, but the most important thing, and
what united them, was the similar way of approaching the artistic style, a particular
style that already began at the School (EMAD). The first members were Pedro Volpe,
Silvio Pindu, Vayolet Layón and Pablo Cuttier

Their main objective was to explore a theater that explores expressionist forms.

The meetings and rehearsals were held at Pedro Volpe's house, where theatrical
works and performances were also performed. For each montage they resorted to
different methodologies. They were against "pre-established recipes", however, they
dedicated a lot of work and sacrifice to each setting.

Among the most important works that were presented by Ancestral Teatro we can
mention:

- "The mystery of the staircase", by Félix Álvarez

- "No one is free when they truly love", by Pedro Volpe

- "Cinderella", based on Perrault's story

- "Antoine", by Pedro Volpe

- "The comedy and finita", by Agustín Núñez

- "A Christmas Carol", based on the story by Charles Dickens

The group dissolves because the different members are requested by other groups for
different jobs, however, the only one who remains in it, actively and permanently, is
Pedro Volpe, who has formed a group called De Las Almas Teatro.
INTERCULTURAL PROJECT "LAND WITHOUT EVIL"

THEATER - DANCE

To refer to the Intercultural Project "Land without Evil" it is important to go back to

1994, at the "ULISSES" theater school of the Continuous Theater of Padova, (Italy),
during a seminar held by Wal Mayans. It is there where the meeting took place
between some young Literature students and other Theater students from that school.
From there arose their need to use the body differently; establishing premises and
needs in accordance with their biological identity and generation, since the ethical,
aesthetic and intellectual models that they had at that time were not enough for them.
They were looking for something more in line with nature and the lost organicity.

One of its main influences on these young generations emerged in 1976 in Belgrade,
where the first meeting of Third Theater or Group Theater took place. World cultural
phenomenon formed by theater people, isolated and anonymous intellectuals, who in
reality did not coincide with the typology of traditional theater culture or with that of
avant-garde theater, but rather their own: that of the Third Theater. A ghetto of group
culture. Lock yourself up to ensure an existence. The enunciations of this theatrical
archipelago were dictated by Eugenio Barba, director of the Odin Teatret Group in
Denmark, with its group identity policy, which was manifested at that time in Europe
and Latin America.

From this phenomenon, another new influence reemerged in the eighties, based on the
experiences of group cultures. A new institution-school was born, ISTA (International
School of Theater Anthropology) where new forms of physical behavior between East
and West are proposed for acting work on stage. It was also created by Eugenio
Barba.

"To the horizon of the Earth without evil" was defined as an intercultural project that
aimed to create and contain a space where alternative cultures develop. Thus the
project moved to Zürich, Switzerland and then in 1996 it was established in Paraguay.
The NGO "Intercultural Project Tierra Sin Mal" was created, and within it, with regard to
theater itself, the "Hara Teatro".

"Hara Teatro" has its own culture. The group united a restlessness that lived in each of
the members, a root that was searching for itself, in fact existing corroborated that they
grew from other roots and in turn, were roots again. Parallel to the existing culture,
whether in their own land or abroad, they lived and claimed the identity of being
human, and through their art, established a constant exchange with the world around
them.

The Cultural NGO "Intercultural Project Tierra Sin Mal" was founded by the actor,
director, choreographer and dancer Wal Mayans.

In the beginning, Raquel Martínez, Fabio Chamorro, Tomi (José) Roa, Aida Risso,
Alexandra Dos Santos, Nelson Arce were part of it. Currently (2007), Wal Mayans,
Raquel Martínez, Sonia Amarilla Eduardo Roja, Alexandra Dos Santos, José Roa, Aida
Risso from Italy collaborate and continue after 10 years. As the "Hara Teatro" Group,
Wal Mayans, Raquel Martínez, José Roa, Hilario Godoy and Ever Capdevila continue
to work.

From the first day of work they were very demanding of themselves. Body, vocal,
musical and visual training is part of their discipline in daily actions. They define
themselves with classical roots within their line of work.

The influence of the codified Oriental Theater and the Anthropological Theater support
the philosophy of the assumed commitment. The daily routine that they continue to
practice to this day is composed of acrobatic exercises, dance, training construction,
codified exercises on Renaissance paintings, voice management and the study and
exercise of the diversity of resonators. Until now they have maintained and improved
the pedagogical training system for actors and dancers that emerged from the study
and practice of the group.

There were many who passed through it, working as an actor, musician, set designer,
dancers, and few who remained. Discipline and daily work caused morale to weaken,
and thus those who were not convinced had to look for a

conventional path for your usual life. The discipline; The fact of first working and then
having the right to speak and vote caused many inconveniences between the new
actors and those who had already worked in the group for a longer time.

Mayans tells us about it: Where is democracy? It is very easy to give opinions, give
directives, divide groups, but likewise the so-called democrats are the first to flee. The
first to leave the group and from the other shore shout that there is injustice, hide their
tails and run. You have to know how to subtract in the boat until the last moment or
else the beautiful words, who sustains them? They end up being useless and it is an
even greater weight when the boat sinks. We do not need to behave as friends in the
group, but as warriors, ready to make a good attack, overcome our weaknesses and
achieve objectives. Friends are at the bar!

His works are aimed at all audiences, but essentially at a young culture. The stage
structure that they have most of the time forces the audience to a central visual spatial
behavior and other semicircular ones. Normally they do street theater, and not street
theater, which has its differences. It's not just about transporting the theater outdoors.
They first study the exact management of space, precision, the management of energy
between actors, the mastery of spatial geometry, being able to execute, with
knowledge, percussion and wind instruments in action, using stilts and elements that
serve for preparation of the space for the public and above all a great body workout.

In that premise, they always aimed more at quality than at the quantity of presentations
given the quality of being a research and new trends laboratory. To prepare each show
they generally take between six months to a year.

It is good to highlight among them:

- “Hamlet”; adaptation of Shakespeare's play

- “Winds Vigil”; inspired by the work A Very Old Man with Huge Wings, by García
Márquez.

- "The Travels of Ulysses." Adaptation of Homer's Odyssey.

- "Mimby." Mythical work about the creation of sound according to the Tupí-Guarani
indigenous people.

- "Women, exodus and resistance." Paraguayan epic work, inspired by the odyssey
suffered by women in the concentration camps of the War of the Triple Alliance (1865-
1870).

- “The Island”, “The Way”; "The beggar". Short works from the Dialogues with Leucó by
Cesare Pavese.

- "The nine shores." Compilation of short plays for nine actors.

- "Oedipais". Adaptation of the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles.

For his shows, the starting point is the codified construction of a score of actions,
whether corporal or vocal. Each actor designs and composes a basic structure of
movements that arises from their closest motivations, memories, dreams, stories,
poetry, music (a melody).
This points to a more subjective and connotative creation. However, there are actors
who resort to a more objective and rational way of thinking, and start from fixed actions
from some other discipline such as tai chi or capoeira, and then transform them and
use them in their own sequences of movements. They study the history of the work to
be performed, but they do not start from the text. The dramatic tension is created with
the choreographic timing of the actors' different proposals. The stage space is no
longer a space where fictitious stories of literary characters are told, but rather the
constructed actions are epidermal realities.

Within the national theater scene, one of the most important contributions of this
Project is the proposal of Group culture, proposed by the actors and actresses
themselves. They seek to be different, basically in the system of discipline and body
training, in addition to offering shows unconventional for the local public, inciting the
young viewer to break old patterns and opt for forms of language unknown to their
culture.

THE CAMARÍN DE LA ASUNCION ART THEATER

When the project of the Municipal Theater Cast of the City of Asunción was closed,
several directors were left without the space that served them for theatrical expression.

Among them, Raquel Rojas, actress, screenwriter, teacher and performing arts
director. Raquel Rojas was characterized within the new Paraguayan theater by the
ease she had in devising projects aimed at the cultural, and mainly theatrical,
development of the country. Rojas is an artist with vast experience within Paraguayan
independent theater (Tiempoovillo, Aty Ñeé, among others), as well as contact and
study in the most renowned groups in America and Europe.

At that time, the production scheme was covered by CAVA, Communication and
Cultural Services productions that supported the productions of El Camarín and the
professional work of its associates. However, an artistic-cultural project was necessary,
under whose inspiration future work that would be carried out in the private sphere
would be guided. It is then that Raquel Rojas designs the creation of "El Camarín
Cultural" with her Space "El Camarín de la Asunción. “Theatre-School of Art, dedicated
to the arts of the stage. This artistic-cultural space was founded coinciding with the
arrival of the new millennium: November 15, 1999.

The cultural philosophy that animated this stage initiative was basically to recover the
spirit of integration of Paraguay to Latin America and Latin America to Paraguay, a
concern that was born during the tour with the Tiempoovillo Group through the region.

The nostalgia of those prolific and beloved times of creation; of so many theater friends
scattered throughout our mestizo America, made her, Raquel Rojas, seek to recover,
at least in part, the spirit that encouraged the pioneer theater artists of the 70s to travel
through America and with the tool that theater provides: work, live and learn in almost
each of the Latin American countries. In this context of ideas, Rojas requested the
Mexican play "Pasajeros de Medianoche", a musical for the prevention of AIDs,
successfully performing it in the Theater of the Ministry of Public Health and Social
Welfare, within the framework of the National Campaign to Fight against AIDS.

In the assembly of said work, "the style" or "the modus operandi" of "El Camarín" was
also already outlined. Harmonize young actors with experienced actors so that the
production becomes an active and creative school. For the young people - Natalia,
Derlis and Dolly - working alongside actors and actresses with great experience such
as Graciela Pastor, Ramón del Río and Rubén Vysokolán, meant training that
increased their rhythm and professional dedication. Just like the actors with a long
career, doing dance, rhythm, singing and other skills workshops again allowed them to
update and recycle knowledge and experiences.

Precise objectives were defined when focusing the artistic work.

1) That is why "El Camarín" is identified as a Theater-Art School. As an active training

and professional updating school in its positions. This is one of its main objectives.

2) The second is to work with the new Paraguayan and Latin American dramaturgy.
They are interested in new texts, new topics; or classical Latin American theater
scenically reconstructed with the technique of Scenic Dramaturgy;

3) And the third great objective is inscribed: The advancement of Paraguayan

dramaturgy and stage dramaturgy. Rojas is particularly interested in Paraguay's
contribution to the world and universal theater, and to achieve this, he evokes Leo
Tolstoy's phrase: "Paint your village and you will reflect the world." Our national
themes; our accents, our joys and disappointments, our hopes as Paraguayans and
Paraguayans is the cultural column of the aesthetic and political work of "El Camarín"
Teatro de Asunción.

Regarding the line referring to aesthetic and thematic proposals, its director, Raquel
Rojas, is fully convinced that a new theater needs new dramaturgy, of course, also new
actors. In this line, they are inspired by classical technical training and by the actor's
training currents, from Stanislavsky to Meyerhold; without leaving aside the Comedy of
Art at the Theater of Darío Fo; from the poetic and political theater of Bertolt Brecht to
the Latin American theater proposals of Enrique Buenaventura and the identity theater
of Brazil.

The management believes that the works carry in themselves a very marked aesthetic
trend and they require different techniques. "We prefer them all!" says Raquel Rojas.
Thus, in the same production they successfully incorporate techniques from the
Comedy of Art, Realism, Magical Realism, Political Theatre, puppets and Ritual Dance
Theatre, such was the case of "Women who stole the fire", one of the paradigmatic
works of the aesthetics of "El Camarín".

Among the most notable positions we can mention:

-"Los mariachis", by Elihú Galván, a co-production with the Mexican director

-"Parto in the Sand and other women's stories", with texts by Neida de Mendoza and
other authors, made with the Women's Secretariat,

-"Love with humor is paid", local adaptation and other texts by Raquel Rojas from "Let's
have sex in Peace", by Franca, Jacobo and Darío Fo

-"Consultorio Sentimental", by Moncho Azuaga in a version by Raquel Rojas, a work

that tells romantic stories involved in the sordid military regime of the dictatorship. It is a
work of realist-expressionist force that became a denunciation of torture in the Stronist
era. It received excellent reviews from Argentine newspapers at the International
Festival of the Three Borders

-“Good Neighbors”, theater and video, by Félix Colmán and Raquel Rojas made in
support of the Mediation Program of Paraguay, for Alternative Conflict Resolution. The
motivation for the work was to visit communities in the interior of the country as part of
the entrepreneurship workshops of the INECIP (Institute of Social and Penal Sciences
of Paraguay). A DVD video was made for the sustainability of the educational
experience transmitted by the work.
-"Waltz of an Angel", by Nelson Rodríguez in version by Raquel Rojas with translation
by Amandy Da Costa González. It is the first Spanish language version of Vals Nro. 6
by Nelson Rodríguez, a piece very little represented in Brazil itself. It was sponsored
and sponsored by the Brazilian Embassy in Paraguay. The work received excellent
reception from the Brazilian public in Paraguay, familiar with Rodríguez's work, and
excellent criticism. She is invited to the Paraguayan Week in Curitiba in the month of
August/07 by the Cultural Directorate of the Foreign Ministry of Paraguay.

SPECIAL MENTION DESERVES:

- "Women who stole fire", inspired by Memories of Fire by Eduardo Galeano, with
dramaturgy by Raquel Rojas. It is based on several years of research in the Chaco
mountains with the Ayoreo Foresters of Gran Chaco. The work takes the case of the
last Ayoreo women shamans, reduced in an Indian hunt by the Fundamentalist Mission
to the New Tribes, in 1986 (it is a testimonial case). These last women priests
remember the history of their ethnic group, they also relate the persecutions by the
military and the tanning companies of Chaco, for the appropriation of the indigenous
territory, and after that story, they let themselves die so as not to witness the cultural
destruction to which its people are subjected.

This work was part of the land recovery campaign for the Totobiegoosode (Ayoreos
Silvícolas) of Chaco, and was prepared with the support of the NGO GAT and the
anthropologist José Zanardini. In addition, an important source has been the field
research "Ayoreas or The forest gatherers", by Raquel Rojas.

Also on that occasion we worked with young actors and actresses in the company of
others with great experience: Graciela Pastor and Nila Servín. The work was awarded
the Arturo Alsina Prize for Best Playwriting. Graciela Pastor, for her role as Chamana
Ayoreo, won the Best Actress award. Nominated for best young actress: Lara Barreto.

• “Red dresses to dance polkas”

This work, inspired by the Italian Comedy of Art, is adapted to Paraguay in the
prototypical characters of the Comedy of Arte: Coimerino (Harlequino), Contrabalinda
(Mirandolina), Doña Aluana Perna Aperta (Isabella) and Don Plata Potá (Pantaleón).
This is a critical and satirical work that surprised the public due to the acidic and stark
level of social criticism and plea against corruption. The work is set in Ciudad del Este,
the city with three borders where the most scandalous cases of corruption in the
country are recorded and the work, in the form of satirical and burlesque comedy,
echoes these situations. In the second part of the comedy, Capitano Espavento del
Valle Infeno, the soldier from Comedia del Arte, is represented. He is a Senator, half
Roman, half current, who is a famous and very influential character in Creole politics.
This character is represented by one of the best actors, the actor Jesús Pérez who
performs a masterful 45-minute monologue supported by the actor and musician, Félix
Colmán. Young performers also perform in "Vestidos...": Sair Gamarra, Mabel Medina
and Jorge Leguizamón, all of whom have degrees in acting from the National Institute
of Fine Arts.

The work had a great impact since it inspired several intellectuals and theater scholars
to write writings alluding to the strong quasi-nihilistic content of the portrait of a society
where, unfortunately, there are no redeemable values. This scenic vision of the
tragicomedy mask was the element that gave a great social impact to the play,
confirming that the Humor Theater can fully fulfill an aesthetic and political objective.

Montages: actors, actresses, teachers, technicians and creative associates. In this

theater company, its members are not stable, in the sense that the actors and
actresses who are invited to work in the different productions vary. However, there is a
rotation of almost the same actors since the line of work of "El Camarín" allows them to
develop their talents and histrionics - their own clown - thus, the participation of the
actors and actresses becomes a binding experience for the actor. stage work. "The
ideal is that over time, the actors and actresses will be associated with "El Camarín."
They are the ones who could most serve as teachers of workshops and training
courses for new actors because they know the type of work deployed in the
productions. Indeed, the Curricular Program for the Training of Actors and Actresses,
Animators and Assistant Directors, a program recognized by the MEC that began in
2008, hopes to have several of these actors/actresses as teachers.

Among the professionals who participated in the presentations we can mention: Ramón
del Río, Rubén Vysokolán, Graciela Pastor, Derlis Esquivel, Silvio Rodas, Beto Ayala,
Luz Saldívar, Leticia Medina, Announcement Galeano, Félix Colman; Jorge Sair
Gamarra, Mabel Medina; Lara Barreto, Andy Fernández, César Ruiz Díaz, Mario
Toñánez, Nila Servín, Ángel Franco, and others. It is also important to highlight that the
creatives and teachers who contributed to each production are recognized as co-
creators of "El Camarín." They are: María Elena Sachero, Jorge Brítez, Wal Mayans,
Hilario Godoy, Mauricio "Pinchi" Cardozo Ocampo, Remigio Pereira; Marisa Cubero
and others.

The way of working at "El Camarín" is described as follows. Once the play and the
actors and actresses have been selected, an intense work of two and a half months of
rehearsal, five hours a day, is generally carried out. During this time, he seeks for the
actors to develop, release and expand their personal histrionics (In Search of the
Clown himself, or the Actor's Work on Himself) and then build the character based on
the basic temperament of the actors. The construction of the character thus has the
vitality and expressive force that the actor gives it, which is not at all overshadowed by
the Person/Mask/Character.

In experienced actors, this system leads them to release atavisms that drag on for
years, and in the System of liberation through the dispossession of daily rituals
(Grotowsky), new gestural, expressive, psychological and emotional expressions can
be found again that renews experienced actors. As for new actors and actresses, they
are contained with a technique and gesture based on Stanislavski's Method of Physical
Actions, so that they are attached to a chain of actions that contains and refers to them.

The music is usually original and is closely integrated into the montage. The same as
the choreographer, the acting teacher and other more specialized techniques. There is
a predominance of great body work in all the works; also a vocal and singing demand.
Almost everyone must play an instrument or have internships in rhythm and sound
workshops, since music is a primary element of the works within the aesthetics of "El
Camarín." The audiovisual resource is used with increasing frequency and insertion
into the montage. Currently in the play "Paraguay -Los de Abajo", the audiovisual will
be one of the main protagonists along with the actors. All the works of "El Camarín"
were recorded on DVD and filmed by the Teleeducation team and are part of the
collection of the Ministry of Education and Culture for the dissemination of Theater in
Schools.

In addition, this group carries out a rich activity, such as:

*Communication and cultural services. Theater inserted in communication for

development and social change for campaigns that require communicating social
objectives through Theater.

* "El Camarín Cultural", the cultural and not exclusively scenic chapter, is one of the full
cultural members of the National Concertation, which is a political project for political,
social and cultural change in Paraguay. The cultural policy of the performing arts and
culture in general is one of the central concerns of this cultural program.

* Audiovisuals, educational and cultural television and cinema, with support from
Teleeducation, private producers and directors.
* Product campaigns for the commercial market, as a parallel and exclusive marketing
activity

* The Theater School according to an Actor Training Program approved by the MEC

* Specialized workshops: Theater therapy, Theater and self-esteem, Theater and

gender, Ethno theater, Theater-dance.

TUKAÉ
This cast was created from a group of young actors, most of them trained at the
Arlequín Theater, who decided to form their own team.

Although they have staged works for adults, "Corte Fatal" and "Cyrano", they have
been characterized by developing a long career doing adult theater for children. Among
its most notable founders we can name Regina Bachero, Juan Carlos Cañete, Luís
Ríos and Edgar Fiddes, among others. They put on plays hiring young actors and
actresses such as Ana Mello, Tana Schémbori, Blanca Gray, Lucy Galiano, Jaime
Floren, Griselda Unzaín, Rodrigo Meneces, Jorge Ramos, Lucas Cabrera, Lory
Andersen, Florencia Saguier, Eliana Pradillo to name a few.

Among the directors hired we can mention Arturo Fleitas, Agustín Núñez, Carlos
Aguilera and Víctor Hugo Cortéz. The visualization of several of his works was in
charge of the theater man and plastic artist, Ricardo Migliorisi

The inclusion of songs and dances gave special shine to his works. The
choreographies were creations of Mónica Pérez, who also worked as an actress and
producer. The musicalization of "The Little Prince" belonged to Casto Darío Martínez,
while the lyrics of the songs belonged to the poet Hernán Jaeggi.

Among his most notable works we can mention:

-"Cyrano"

- "Around the world in eighty days", by V. H. Cortez

-"Fatal cut"

-"The Little Prince", based on the text by Saint-Exupery, adaptation by Agustín Núñez

-"The Merengue Family", by Omar Varela

-Robinson Crusoe, VH version Cortez

After intense work carried out for years, the group dissolves, giving rise to each of its
members remaining firmly within the artistic and theatrical world, but in different
modalities.

SARAMBÍ THEATER
This group was created in the early nineties, after the return of Julio Saldaña, together
with his partner in life and in theater work, Liber Fernández. Both developed important
activity in Central America, in terms of acting and directing training.
Saldaña, belonged to the Tiempoovillo group, since its beginnings. Then he became
actively involved in the Libre Teatro Libre (Córdoba-Argentina), directed by María
Escudero, one of the great personalities of the theater of the southern cone, who
thoroughly investigated the collective form of work. Following political repression,
Saldaña created her own group with which she visited much of Latin America and
Spain. Fernández came from a strong training and participation as an actress in the
Cali Experimental Theater, directed by Enrique Buenaventura. With him, he toured
much of America and Europe. Both come to Paraguay to participate in the transition to
democracy, after the 1989 coup, in which the dictatorship of General Stroessner was
overthrown.

They had extensive experience in children's theater, and that is why they decided to
form the Sarambí group (which in Guaraní means disorder), focusing on carrying out
participatory work for the child in the development of the show. To do this, they resort
to games, magic, songs and any type of element that could be articulated to the scene.

They achieve a very particular profile within the national theater work, taking their
shows wherever they are requested, works that are suitable for both children and
adults.

In addition to Liber Fernández and Julio Saldaña, Augusto Toranzos and Willy Segovia
participated as actors; among others.

Currently (2007) the group is still active and working on the staging of a work authored
by Saldaña; "Payasos.com", where they resort to the metaphor of the management of
power within a circus to show the game of corrupt authoritarianism. It is a text full of
brilliant theatrical actions, which like the previous shows, will surely delight young and
old alike.

THE STREET THEATER

The "Street Theater" group began its activities in 1989. ,From a request from "Let's
decide", inserted within what was "Campaign for citizen expression." This NGO formed
its activities in order to teach citizens how to vote. After the dictatorship had just fallen,
a huge percentage of the population did not vote, which is why this citizen awareness
campaign began.

Teresa González was called to lead this project. She was one of the co-founders of the
Tiempoovillo theater group, with extensive experience in theater as an actress,
director, teacher and set designer, she was without a doubt the right person to develop
it.

As a next step, he invited other actors and actresses from the media, with whom he
proposed to create theater in public spaces, that is, on the street, in order to reach that
segment of spectators who did not attend theaters.
Moncho Azuaga was called as playwright, while Gloria Muñoz, Beto Ayala, Carlos
Cáceres, Blanca Gray, Karina Gray, Domingo Coronel, Cristina Vigil and Máximo
Barrios, participated as actors, under the direction of Teresa González Meyer, with
extensive experience in the acting and direction. The Work: "Let's Decide Juan" was
written by Moncho Azuaga, based on content provided by the NGO, and had a didactic
nature.

Those who were part of the above-mentioned campaign began to work based on
improvisations from the text - in Yopará. There was almost no material precedent in the
country about street theater, so they had to carry out in-depth research work.

The director, Teresa González, had taken a workshop with Peter Schuman, in the US,
director of the group Bread and Puppet, which for many years had as its modality doing
street theater. There he acquired the basis of certain languages necessary for this type
of modality and thus, the group began its activities.

Above all, they sought to reach a different audience, leave the rooms, celebrate the
city, occupy spaces that during the time of the dictatorship were closed to citizens.
They considered it important to try to recover community spaces, such as the atriums
of churches, squares, parks; and especially the square as a meeting place for the
popular artist, as a place to tell stories, to sit down and have a delicious tereré or to
host on the hot afternoons of Paraguay, where fantastic urban legends are triggered;
recover street traditions, the carnival, the parades, the traditional festivals, with bands,
flags, ribbons and color.

Thus they resumed all the neighborhood celebrations, where the entire neighborhood
came together to enjoy celebrations that were lost. In this way, they began the work,
trying to delve into the voices of our people, in the sparkling language of the fruit sellers
on the corner, the canillitas, with the particular mischief of the street, the seller of
flowers, sweets, -sweet dulcera-, the dealer, who came to the houses with their songs,
their calls, their proclamations.

At first, they rehearsed without very clearly defining a line of work, they were looking for
a language that would allow them to communicate easily with the common passerby,
unfamiliar with theater theater, and who, furthermore, did not have or feel the obligation
to stay watching the show. This was a very big challenge. The members of the group
were aware of certain rules, such as, for example, they knew that the figures had to be
amplified, that the volume of the work had to be expressed to the maximum, keeping in
mind that they would compete with the noises of the square, of the street. They were
also very clear that humor had to be present, with characters that were in the collective
imagination, in order to "catch" the passer-by to turn them into an "occasional"
audience. With these premises, often appealing to the "grotesque", they hit the streets
with the first creation: "Let's Decide Juan." Given the positive experience and the
public's response, the director takes a much more serious and committed approach to
Street Theater as a work option.

He began a long investigation into the so-called "pure forms", the Creole circus,
community celebration events; to become much more interested in the whole festival
that was theater in Greece, where as part of the festivities, plays were performed
throughout the day; learn from the Commedia del Arte, minstrelsy, in short, from any
source that serves this type of expression. All this opened - in a way - a path for him, in
the search for street theater language. With the support of Moncho Azuaga, they
worked hard on what the language of the people means in their festivities,
neighborhood parties, celebrations, religious or not, seeking to find the tone of the
works.

As an important discovery, they found that there is a musicality that is very much ours,
like a score, that by listening to the city, one could decipher it: the street shouts, the
canillita, the popular singer in the square, the street vendor, the relationships and
bartering in the markets. popular, the forklift drivers, the night, the bohemian, the
"weird"... an infinite range in the city, on the street...

Later, they ventured into Street Theater group techniques, and resorted to the
parameters that the director possessed as an architect, focusing on the need to use
urban space as a stage space. With this they achieve a different dimension at work.
The view becomes much sharper on the use and exploitation of space.

The entire city could be transformed into a large occasional "stage." That was very
important to advance the work; use the benches, the buildings, the statues, the street,
the sidewalk. Transform everything, giving the passerby's everyday space another
look, making it "extra-everyday" for a short period of time.

Drawing on other street experiences, they designed a theatrical structure. They found a
key element: they had to start the work with what would be the call; the call, a first part
that basically consisted of drawing the attention of the passerby through percussion,
flags, singing, dance, ribbons, juggling. In short, an explosion of sounds and colors.
Once the audience approached, the play began. The playwright, Moncho Azuaya, was
writing short stories, which although they had continuity, and could form a single work,
were conceived as short modules, so that anyone could decide whether to observe a
short time, or a complete action, or the entire work. , which still made sense.

The inclusion of set designers in the work team meant that, together with the director
and members of the group, they could think of a kind of prop-scenography, and
costumes, that was light, light to wear, but that at the same time had the playful , an
aesthetic for the street and vibrant colors that would attract the passerby.

They oriented that search towards certain elements such as cardboard, plastics,
disposables, fabrics and all types of light props, feasible to transport, but that at the
same time had a visual impact strong enough to attract the occasional public-passerby.
To make giant dolls, they mainly used wicker; an extremely malleable, noble and light
material that allowed the construction of masks and dolls. Other times foam rubber was
used.

The musical part often became a difficult element to solve. For reasons of the very
nature of the shows, they could not hire music equipment, and due to the high cost,
they resorted to live music, which was also quite expensive.

Among his most important experiences we can cite the work "Proibido en la plasa los
niños y los niños" by Azuaga himself. With it they managed to give him Calle's
language; the right rhythm; accelerated, by the way, with actors singing and dancing:
the use of space, the appropriate color, necessary for the framework that constituted
the street. They performed more than 700 performances with it; in addition to attending
six International Festivals (Mexico, Buenos Aires, Expo Sevilla 92, among other
places).

Linked to local problems, they focus on another important experience with the work
"Brief turn-of-the-century drama about the rare famines of the monstrovia, predator of
rivers, and the joyful resistance of life", by Moncho Azuaga. This work was part of an
environmental campaign against the waterway, and was part of a very particular
international congress, since it took place on a journey along the Paraguay River, from
Corumbá, Brazil (almost at the source) to Asunción. The members of the theater group
traveled in three boats, and the duration of the journey was 18 days.

As on other occasions, specific street elements were used: giant dolls, stilts; flag,
Chinese ribbons, etc. This was the group's first contact with the riverside communities,
which received them with expectation and joy. Upon arriving at the port, the actors
were in charge of starting the presentation of the congress.

The experience was very rich; because they worked in communities where a theater
group had never arrived; including two indigenous communities that did not speak
Guaraní, but still managed to establish a kind of game based on everything, the visual
language.

One of the main achievements of Teresa González and her Street Theater Group is to
have brought theater at its highest level, to sectors far from it. In addition to the
recovery of the spirit of those "barbaric", "neighborhood" festivities, where old and
young, black and white, rulers and ruled, rich and poor, played with bombs, garlands,
flags, buckets of water, with laughter and With tears they united in a single celebration.

The positive and great contribution to the spirit of the city is undeniable, the power to
harmoniously and lively relate the theatrical event with urban spaces, closed or open. It
allowed us to delve into our hidden, secret stories, into our myths and legends, tales of
fantastic characters, and manage to bring them to today, to offer them to that public
that daily walks the streets, trying to give them another look at their city, at their
surroundings.

BOCHIN THEATER-CLOWN

The Bochin Teatro-Clown was formed in May 1983 in Madrid, Spain. It is made up of
Jorge Brítez, (1956), Paraguayan actor, clown and director, and Marisa Cubero (1960),
Spanish actress and clown trained at the Municipal Theater School of Móstoles-Madrid
and the Circo de los Muchachos.

Jorge Brítez came to Spain with experience in stage work. In Paraguay, he began his
theatrical work in the Yvy Pora group of Coronel Oviedo in 1973 and from there he
became part of the Aty Ñe'e theater group (1976-1982) in Asunción, participating in the
following theatrical productions: "Velada ", "Masquerade in Troubled River", "Fishing
Night", "From War to Cabaret", "The Warehouse", "Mandyjuty", "Kure Kose", "While the
Wolf is Away".

In 1980 he began his teaching work with the deaf and created "Gesto", the first
experience of theater for the deaf in Paraguay. He made his first individual proposal
with "Qué Circo" with which he toured Bolivia and Peru in 1981. In 1982 he traveled to
Europe from where he returned in 2005, along with his art family to rejoin the
Paraguayan theater movement.

Daughter of art at last, Aura Brítez (1987) joined the group since her childhood and
continues to be part of the group. Among its main objectives was always the search for
a language following the path of the ancient comedians and the circus. That reunion
with a way of doing theater that exploits the possibilities of those elements that make
the theatrical event a party, such as: a solid theatrical training, the use of music, the
elements of skill, and all the possibilities that pantomime offers. Thus creating shows
that can lead to working with audiences of different ages and different countries,
disparate languages but all united by the magic of what the circus and popular festivals
represent for them.

Among his main mounted works we can mention

- "Clown World"

- Parenthesis in the park"

-"Giracircus"

- "In the key of Clown"

- "Toxcircus"

- "Circollage"
- "Clownerías"

- "Comedian's Job"

- "Seagull's Nest"

- "Jasy Rasy"

- "East of the Bay" (Navigators of the Heart)

- "Angelic"

They produced a lot at that time, teaching and learning from the beginning and in
contact with diverse cultures.

In the first years the "Bochin Teatro-Clown carried out intense tours throughout Europe
(France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy) with the aim of making their work known
and contacting the great masters such as: Colombaioni, Annie Fratellini, Michael
Christensen, Jango Edwards, Teatro Pothlach, Tascabile di Bergamo.

In this transition, the Bochin Teatro-Clown enriched its language and artistic style since
each area or region needed certain elements with which it had to experiment, seeing
the possibility of linking them to its way of working. In countries where they did not
understand the language, they used more sound and gestural language. In Italy, apart
from communicating through music, they learned to communicate in contact with
people. In Spain they used the language of the Spanish Golden Age, with Cervantes,
Lope de Vega, Lope de Rueda, Calderón de la Barca. This led them to get closer to the
world of the track through the boys' circus (1984), exchanging pantomime classes, to
receive circus classes (juggling, stilts, acrobatics, curling, unicycle...)

They were founding members of the Cooperative Society of Circus Artists and the
Center for New Acrobatic and Circus Tendencies in Madrid-Spain from 1990 to 1992.

The work carried out, given the level of quality, was selected to participate in the
thirteenth "Circus of Tomorrow" festival at the Winter Circus in Paris-France in 1990,
where they represented Paraguay. In 1993 the Bochin Teatro Clown became part of
the independent theater company "Gusarapo" from Madrid-Spain with which they
shared more than 11 years of experience in street theater.

With Gusarapo theater they set up recreations of medieval, Baroque and Spanish
Golden Age markets, with characters of artisans, comedians, fire and pyrotechnics
achieving authentic communion between the public and artists. An average of 40,000
(forty thousand) people passed through these shows per weekend. In 2004, the Bochin
Teatro-Clown decided to leave the European stage, to rejoin Paraguayan theater with
all its potential and learning, and to do so, settle permanently here.

Among his main contributions to Paraguayan theater, we can highlight the translation
of all this experience of more than 23 years of different performing techniques acquired
in Europe and enriched over the years, both in the pedagogical aspect and in direction
and acting. To this day, it is one of the groups with the greatest scenic, circus and
acrobatic resources that has ever existed in the country. Since their return, followers of
theatrical art have emerged who decided to aim their work in the direction they
outlined, but giving them a personal character.

Currently (2007) the Bochin Teatro-Clown is made up of Jorge Brítez, Marisa Cubero
and Aura Brítez. They reside in the city of Luque in their home-school where they have
a library and an abundant video library about their experiences.

The Nhi-Mu group was founded on June 13, 1997. Its original members were: Selva
Fox, Pato Masera, Nelson Arce, Sonia Amarilla, Pablo Meilicke, Karina Sanabria and
Juan Álvarez. However, for different reasons, there were defections over the years. In
2005, having its own space, the group was restructured, leaving Selva Fox and Pato
Masera at the head of the coordination.

The main objective of each of them is to make known the particular theatrical
alternative that Nhi-Mu proposes; generate multidisciplinary shows that can be seen
throughout the country and abroad; develop your space as an option for other artists,
grow and solidify more and more.

The work of this group is characterized by improvisation and creation of theatrical

actions based on concepts, images or ideas generated by themselves. These actions
take place mainly in airspace, that is, structures, ceilings, walls, and are not limited
exclusively to the ground. The main shows presented by this group are:

- “Trip 1". It marks the beginning and artistic trend of the group.

- "Submerged". It generates a new resource in the setting, capable of moving the work
(with unconventional materials and objects) to common places.

- “Journey 2". It marks the return to the scene, in its own space and with a mature and
stable work group, not only on an artistic but also a technical level.

- "Square meter". It poses a new challenge for the group and the public by
implementing the use of new elements such as text.

In the time it has been in existence, the group has gone through various stages. Initially
he focused on the formation of his line of work, his aesthetic essence and his scenic
language. Later, for reasons of production and space viability, he focused more on
carrying out small theatrical actions that generally took place at events, as well as
children's plays. Finally, by acquiring its own space, it was possible to form a wonderful
work team and present the type of proposals originally conceived.

As pending projects they have:

- Use of the premises to hold workshops, meetings and debates.

- Continue staging your own works such as “Too much later I loved you... when the
light was off", made at the end of 2007.

- Continue with the development of projects that involve artistic disciplines such as
audiovisual, music, dance and contemporary art.

- Also venture into staging works by other alternative groups and not just Nhi-Mu.

Each Nhi-Mu show proposal is based on arduous research work, so stage surprises of
great theatrical value are constantly presented. To date (2007) it is the only group that
seriously and constantly ventured into the discipline of aerial theater.

THE ACTUAL SITUATION

Currently, the new Paraguayan theater is going through a good moment.

Despite the enormous crisis prevailing in the country, theater workers still develop
projects, courses, meetings, semi-mounted theater and theater weeks where different
types of innovative proposals are constantly presented and confronted, both in form
and content. .

Contrary to the thirty-five years of military dictatorship, what was sown in the theater in
this difficult country is bearing fruit.
The two official theater schools (the Municipal School of Art Dr. amatic of Asunción and
the Institute of Fine Arts belonging to the Ministry of Education and Culture), as well as
several private schools, constantly provide new blood to the national theater
movement.

The Paraguayan Theater Center, the only entity in the country responsible for bringing
together and defending theater workers, has given main support to the development of
new values, strengthening those already established.

You can see how, even with its own difficulties and social situation, as well as the rise
of film and television, Paraguayan independent theater has fought and made an effort
to earn its own space in the cultural universe.

Here it is stated that the diversity of shows and works offered have been numerous and
varied, in terms of artistic quality and quantity, always in the attempt to increasingly
captivate the viewing public.

Several exponents and values have emerged that constantly enrich the entire spectrum
that makes up national representation. It is also meritorious and here, as a man of
theater, goes my gratitude to the constant support and dissemination that, thanks to the
media, institutions, organizations and people who love art, has been able to expand.

There is still a way to go and the expectation of the contribution that independent
theater can provide to the entire national culture and Paraguayan society is increasing.