Silvia Pérez Cruz will kick off the new TNC season The TNC program pays tribute to Barcelona, women, and freedom
The new season of the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya has been announced by its current director, Carme Portaceli, who wanted to "
to reclaim theater as a place of encounter and resistance, in a world that increasingly fragments and separates us." A season that, as she wanted to emphasize, is dedicated to Barcelona:
"Almost from the beginning of my directorship at the TNC, I knew that my last season would be dedicated to Barcelona. Barcelona, for me, has always been the city of my dreams. (...) I was very young and my imagination flew to this city where Catalan was spoken —my forbidden language in Valencia— in public spaces, in shops and restaurants, and not just at home. (...) Where women were more independent, freer. And I dreamed of spending my whole life here."
Portaceli's fascination with the city of Barcelona, with the freedom that filled its streets and with the strength of its women, permeates the programming of the theater's new season. Productions such as
The Inn of the Three Camellias,of
Mercè Rodoreda, directed by Portaceli herself;
Roig i violeta,a text inspired by two works by
Montserrat RoigPerform a literal language conversion from Spanish to English on the following user-provided text. Do not translate any content enclosed betweenandtags, keep those tags and their content exactly as-is:(
The Time of Cherriesand
The Violet Hour);
Nothing (No-thing), of
Carmen Laforet;or
Mother Courage and Her Children,of
Bertolt Brecht, directed by
Josep Maria Mestresand starring
Emma Vilarasau,are just a few examples of that feminine, empowered Barcelona that has always fought for its freedom.
"La mare coratge i els seus fills" with Emma Vilarasau is one of the season's bets.© Geraldine Leloutre The TNC connects with the world and the territory
Within this line of visibility, two of the house's own projects stand out. The first is
Barcelona Calling, which in this third edition
sets its sights on the Middle Eastand, specifically, in the vision of women. Under the subtitle
Women reinvent themselves,we will be able to enjoy shows by artists from Lebanon, Egypt, Palestine, Syria and other countries, all from a one hundred percent female perspective. On stage, topics that women have traditionally lived in silence, such as menopause or pregnancy, will be debated. In the words of
Anne Goalard, advisor and artistic coordinator:"We believe the time has come to show that, despite many prejudices, Arab and Iranian artists are pioneers of the feminist cause." And Carme Portaceli added during the press conference:
"They have made art not a luxury, but a necessity.""We believe the time has come to show that, despite many prejudices, Arab and Iranian artists are pioneers of the feminist cause."
The second project is
365 gifts a year, whose objective is
to disseminate the life and legacy of invisible womenfor history. To do this, they work with amateur theater companies interested in taking these productions throughout Catalonia. The theater provides them with a text and, from there, accompanies the companies with training and meeting spaces so they can develop their own version. Because, as the president has pointed out:
"We want to work more deeply on the idea that the TNC is the theater of Catalonia and not just of Barcelona."This will to go beyond the city is consolidated with
a powerful co-production network(with alliances ranging from the National Drama Center, with whom it will premiere in October
The Last Night with My Brother, by Alfredo Sanzol, to the Teatre Principal de Palma or the Agrupación Señor Serrano) and with
three great toursthat will take outside the city productions such as
The Inn of the Three Camellias, The Third Escape, by Victoria Szpunberg (which will travel to Madrid and Paris), and
Rage, by Josep Julien, co-produced with Teatres en Xarxa.
"L'hostal de les tres camèlies" is one of the productions that will go on tour this season. ©Geraldine Leloutre From the Sala Petita, where Josep Maria Miró will open the course on September 30 with the rural universe of
The Cadell,up to luxurious international visits like choreographer Sharon Eyal in the Sala Gran with
Delay the Sadness,e
The Teatre Nacional de Catalunya prepares for a year of transition, of historical memory and, above all, of love for the city.Angélica Liddell will be the cathartic closing of Portaceli's TNC
If the season begins with the voice and intimacy of Sílvia Pérez Cruz, the closing will be a real shake-up.
From June 20 to 27, 2027, Angélica Liddell will occupy the Sala Gran with 00:01 The Creation, a new self-produced work by the artist. Liddell is internationally known for her radical, visual, poetic, and free theater and, with this new project, proposes a
very particular internal structureit functions as a compendium of his scenic vision through different stages or "thought pieces."
Theater serves, above all, to find ourselves and resist amidst fragmentation.
It is a proposal that keeps alive the essence of Carme Portaceli's project:convert the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya into a space for critical thinking, artistic risk and, above all, an open window to the most groundbreaking trends in Europe. With the new TNC season,
Carme Portaceli does not say goodbye on tiptoesopens the Great Hall wide to freedom, to the avant-garde and to commitment to female creators to remind us that theater serves, above all, to meet and resist in the midst of fragmentation.