"Theater is therapeutic, and even helps patients understand their illness"

To merge theater and science. This is the purpose with which the Institute of Science and Theater (InCiTe) was born in 2013, combining two disciplines that, at first glance, seem totally distant. After more than 25 years working as a researcher and teacher, Susana Eva Martínez, a doctor in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), decided to make a 360-degree turn in her professional career and bet on intertwining her two passions, hanging up her scientific lab coat to get on stage.

Since then, Susana Eva Martínez has created more than a dozen theatrical shows that address, from a scientific perspective, diseases such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's, as well as problems such as aging or emotional management, in addition to giving training and theatricalized dramatizations of real medical cases. All, with a clear objective: to make science more accessible and understandable to society, with theater as a great ally. Her work in scientific dissemination made InCiTe the winner of the award granted by The New Barcelona Post during the Nit de l'Empresa i la Cultura, awards organized by the Fundació Catalunya Cultura.

The Institute of Science and Theater is currently preparing its latest production, titled Crema, Groenlàndia, and addresses the climate emergency without falling into alarmism. The scientific theater piece has been built through a research and co-creation process that combines climate change and social science researchers linked to the Barcelona Supercomputing Center-National Supercomputing Center (BSC – CNS) and InCiTe artists, and has been financed by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology - Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities. The play will premiere on June 19 at the Espai d'Arts Escèniques Casal de Alella, and can be seen at the Teatre Eòlia from June 26 to 29, with the idea of starting a subsequent tour.

--- Despite the apparent differences between artistic creation and science, these disciplines often meet and dialogue. In what sense can art become an ally for scientists?

--- It is essential that we use any resource, and art is a very direct and effective technique, to bring scientific knowledge to society. We think that science is a discipline only reserved for a few geeky scientists, but science surrounds us and directly affects us. For example, we have to make decisions about diseases, treatments, drugs, or the permits granted to artificial intelligence. Without access to rigorous information in these areas, we are lost. It is true that science has a very complex language to be understood by individuals who, in general, have little knowledge.

--- Just as citizens have little scientific education, scientists also lack knowledge on how to communicate or even how to explain bad news to a patient.

--- Doctors are trained to save lives, not to accompany illnesses or people at the end of their lives. Professionals have to face situations such as communicating to a patient that they have a serious, even fatal, illness, without having the knowledge of the best way to do it. For all these reasons, it is necessary to have a bridge that is capable of translating and making scientific language understandable, but without falling into inaccuracies.

--- Is theater the most efficient translator between science and society?

--- Theater is therapeutic, and it is a very direct channel to reach the heart, appealing to people's emotions, but also to their brain. Theater productions, with a scientific basis, can help patients recognize and understand their illness. Because if you don't understand what is happening, you also cannot understand the importance of its treatment. And there are silent diseases that can kill if not controlled. My father was diabetic and I saw it clearly: you cannot manage a disease if you don't understand, for example, why sugar levels rise or what role insulin plays.

"It is by appealing to feelings, always maintaining scientific rigor, that we manage to make concepts penetrate the brain," Susana Eva Martínez

--- After a show, we have had patients come to us who have confessed that it was the first time they empathized with their illness. It is not until they see their case on stage that they manage to understand what is happening to them. A Parkinson's patient even stated that, after attending the performance, he was glad to suffer from this disease because, for the first time, he had understood how it acted and that there were medications that could help him. Because it is through appealing to feelings, always maintaining scientific rigor, that we manage to make concepts penetrate the brain.

--- In fact, this is the purpose of theater since Ancient Greece, when shows sought to reach catharsis.

--- Precisely, we seek to apply this concept of Greek catharsis to science. It is very good that theater serves as entertainment, but we want to go further and work with a clear vocation of service to people and, in our case, sometimes they are sick and vulnerable people.

--- It is with this pedagogical aspect that you founded the Institute of Science and Theater twelve years ago, after 25 years of scientific career and a permanent position as a teacher. How do you decide to make this change and get on stage?

--- It was very difficult for me to make the decision, because I was aware that it was a leap into the void. The scientific career I was pursuing was the goal I had been chasing for decades, and I even managed to do a postdoctoral fellowship in Boston to make my dream come true! After so much time, I had achieved the stability I desired, and embarking on this path meant throwing away all the sacrifice and effort. But I really liked teaching health sciences and I had the desire to bring this knowledge, beyond my students, and to make it reach society. Theater, which I had been passionate about since childhood, was the best ally.

"I would even say that the world of arts is much more competitive than the scientific one, and mind you, the scientific field is hyper-competitive and stressful," Susana Eva Martínez

--- Precisely, the most difficult thing was to manage this uncertainty. I had a permanent position, and now I don't know what I will earn next month. At first, I tried to combine these two passions, studying therapeutic theater while still working as a teacher and scientific researcher. But I soon understood that they were two disciplines that demanded a lot of energy and dedication.

--- In addition, they are also two very competitive disciplines, in which one has to constantly fight to make one's way.

--- I would even say that the world of arts is much more competitive than the scientific one, and mind you, the scientific world is hyper-competitive and stressful. But in the theatrical world, you have to continuously try to survive instability and precariousness. With our productions, we have never managed to enter the theatrical circuit; it is a very closed world. We have always worked on commission, that is, the fourteen works we have created have always been at the request of some entity or association, and then we have toured nationally through civic centers, athenaeums, city councils... In addition, we work in different creative spaces through residencies, and now we rehearse at the Espai d'Arts Escèniques Casal de Alella.

"Our works do not talk about science, but rather science is within them"

--- The first one addressed diabetes, with the Rossend Carrasco i Formiguera Foundation, but we have also dealt with Alzheimer's or Parkinson's, as well as other more generic topics such as aging, in collaboration with the Barcelona City Council, or emotion management. For this reason, most of our shows are aimed at health professionals, but also at patients and caregivers, and we have even done some aimed at students or schools.

--- How are scientific terms introduced into theatrical performances?

--- Sometimes, art, in its desire to make concepts more understandable, falls into errors or states data that are incorrect or inaccurate. Our works do not talk about science, but rather science is within them. Therefore, it requires an extensive process of documentation and preparation, discerning true articles, and then we filter the information to make it enjoyable and understandable, through dramatic metaphors, personal testimonies, or theatrical resources. There are very few examples of scientific theater like InCiTe, only some other institution in Northern Europe or the United States... Here, however, we have scientists who do theater or shows that talk about science but in a poetic or artistic way.

"Pseudoscientific currents, like the anti-vaccine movement, take advantage of the lack of information," Susana Eva Martínez

--- The research is the same as that of a scientific article, to explain all aspects of the disease: the causes, the drugs, the consequences... For example, in the case of Alzheimer's, we cannot hide the truth: it is a degenerative disease, which will get worse and the patient will die, but it must be explained with respect and accuracy. In the end, it's like attending a master class in health sciences, but through witnesses and theatrical resources.

--- In addition to theatrical performances, you also provide training and organize dramatized cases.

--- The staging of cases is another important aspect of our work, because it helps patients and doctors see on stage what they do and what they need to correct. For example, on stage, the diabetic who is reluctant to follow a certain diet or the doctor who answers a message while talking to the patient is portrayed. In addition, when we finish the play, we always open a space for debate and questions, with trained professionals capable of answering on stage.

--- What is the audience's reaction after attending one of the plays?

--- First, a generalized silence is created, which indicates how people process the concepts seen on stage. Suddenly, a large number of questions are generated. And this is the objective: to transmit knowledge to generate awareness and awaken critical thinking. Pseudoscientific currents, such as the anti-vaccine movement, take advantage of the lack of information but also the excess of negative news and oversaturation. For example, even though climate change is a concept that is constantly talked about, half of the population does not understand its origin or cause.

--- Crema, Groenlàndia aims to combat precisely this lack of information about climate change.

--- Since 2024, with the collaboration of the BSC, we have been researching and creating a theatrical work that, without falling into catastrophism or excessive dramatism, manages to transmit the idea that we are facing a very serious situation, but we still have room for action and improvement.

--- What actions can we take to combat climate change?

--- We are not looking for the show to generate fear or blame individuals, but rather to awaken critical thinking. Thus, we will be able to reflect on the actions to be taken, which include, for example, reflecting on what politicians we want to govern us on these issues. Theater has this capacity to mobilize and awaken consciousness. Critical thinking is essential, for example, if we are diagnosed with cancer, to decide whether we will opt for chemotherapy or an alternative therapy.