Brecht’s The Mother in the Comuna in 1977: a narrative of a revolution

Abstract

The adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s play The Mother, staged by Teatro da Comuna in December 1977 with music by José Mário Branco, is examined in this article to question the political, ideological, artistic, and even emotional boundaries of the most recent and significant revolutionary process in contemporary Portuguese history. The study addresses three dimensions: the relationship between Maxim Gorky’s novel, Brecht’s play, and the Portuguese adaptation; the alignment (or divergence) of the direction with Brechtian aesthetics; and the musical narrative created by José Mário Branco. Through an analysis of the critical reception of this adaptation of Brecht’s play and of José Mário Branco’s songs, the article highlights the central role that music plays in shaping an ideological and historical vision, revealing tensions between didacticism and revolutionary mobilization.