Teatro de Marionetas do Porto (Portugal)

There is a Bad Witch who hates stories with a happy ending and a Big Bad Wolf disguised as a policeman, patrolling the forest roads. The Seven Dwarves are called to save Cinderella from inevitable death, as specialists in the techniques for saving poisoned young ladies. The Fairy Godmother is an irascible socialite and settles a score with the Bad Witch in a wrestling combat. In the end, Cinderella really marries the Prince and they have lots of children to everybody’s relief.

^{"In the air is the infinite magic of a surprising show and at the level of what the company directed by Seara Cardoso has done best."
-Valdemar Cruz, Expresso}

^{"This is one of the best puppet shows I've ever had the opportunity to watch. The text and interpretation positively surprised and the story is enchanting, because it is not just one - they are many and very well told (...). Little ones should not lose, but neither do adults!"
-Clube Literário do Porto}

BIO

Teatro de Marionetas do Porto was founded in 1988. The company’s theatrical practice represent extremely diverse experiences in the contemporary puppet theatre, looking to find new concepts and new ways of regarding the interpretation and the relationship with other areas of creation. The company was also dedicated to the study and revival of old forms of traditional theatre, like Teatro Dom Roberto, which has been presented more than a thousand times. Their founder and artistic director, João Paulo Seara Cardoso (1956-2010), studied theatre and puppet theatre, attended courses in the Institut National d’Éducation Populaire and Institut International de la Marionnette, in France. He worked with João Coimbra, Marcel Violette, Jim Henson and Lopez Barrantes. In 1982 he initiated the study and spreading of the Teatro Dom Roberto, Portuguese traditional puppets that had more than 1500 presentations. He published children’s books and was the author of television series for the young audiences. The group splits its activity between the programming of the Teatro do Belomonte, in Oporto, and an intense activity touring in Portugal and abroad. Presently, the TMP is engaged in a major project, the Puppet Museum of Oporto, opened in 2013 and in 2016 the company set Pólo das Marionetas/Quinta de Bonjoia where they have been working on social integration with local communities.

^CREDITS

^{Direction, text and set design: João Paulo Seara Cardoso Puppets from the illustrations by: João Vaz de Carvalho Music: Paul Ferrer Costumes: Pedro Ribeiro Movement coordination: Isabel Barros Lighting design: António Real, Rui Pedro Rodrigues Production: Sofia Carvalho Performers: Micaela Soares, Shirley Resende, Vitor Gomes Light operation: Filipe Azevedo Production assistants: Edgard Fernandes, Pedro Miguel Castro Construction workshop: Rui Pedro Rodrigues (coordination and modeling), Inês Coutinho (painting), Nuno Valdemar Guedes e Filipe Garcia Set construction: Américo Castanheira, Tudo-Faço Graphic design: Jorge Cerqueira Photography: Pedro Sardinha Support: Balleteatro Auditório Coproduction: Teatro de Marionetas do Porto, Auditório de Espinho, FIMS - Chão de Oliva Company sponsored by: República Portuguesa - Ministério da Cultura | DGArtes}