Le théâtre de Tiago Rodrigues, "malgré les ruines et la mort"

Abstract

This essay analyzes the relationships between world literary heritage and the theatrical work of Tiago Rodrigues, author, director, founder of the group Mundo Perfeito, former director of TNDMII (2014-2021), and current director of the Festival d'Avignon. The aim is to demonstrate how the presence of universal masterpieces in the writing and performances of the Portuguese artist serves as a means to combat all forms of destruction: political oppression, illness, death, and oblivion. In his work, Tiago Rodrigues seeks to create an interaction between written texts and living bodies that not only extends the life of past works but also brings about a rebirth of all human or fictional beings associated with them: the authors who wrote them, passionate readers, actors who interpreted them, and characters. To achieve this, his theatrical work explores the various relationships that can exist between a body and a text: memorization in "By Heart," reading in the two plays based on 19th-century novels ("Bovary" and "The Way She Dies"), theatrical representation in the play "Sopro," and, finally, rewriting in the tragedies: "Antonio and Cleopatra" based on Shakespeare's play, as well as the tragic trilogy inspired by ancient Greek authors ("Iphigenia," "Electra," and "Orestes").