Ei! Marionetas / Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora

Ei! Marionetas - Encontro Internacional de Marionetas de Gondomar 2026

José Caldas Lifetime Achievement Award [ TRIBUTE ]

Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora
M/6 . 30mins . free access

3 JUL 21h30 . FRI

Auditório Municipal de Gondomar

José Caldas Lifetime Achievement Award

José Caldas studied theatre in Brazil at the Brazilian Theatre Foundation and the National Theatre Conservatory in Rio de Janeiro. From 1972 to 1974, he studied mime and movement in London at the CIT School. He was also an external student at the School of Fine Arts in Paris. Between 1974 and 1978, he attended the Pilot School of Education through Art in Lisbon.

In Portugal, from 1975 to 2021, he created 63 productions.

A director, teacher and playwright, he wrote theatre reviews for “O Jornal” and contributed to programmes on RTP such as “Concordo ou talvez não” and “Os Amigos de Gaspar”. As an author, he has published several works; as a director, he has worked in Italy, France, Brazil, Spain and Portugal. He has also won numerous awards in various artistic fields: awards from the Portuguese Association of Theatre Critics; the Biennale Théâtre Jeunes Publics Award – Lyon; and the Maria Casares Award – Galicia.

He has taught at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences: ESMAE; ACE; Ballet Teatro; University of Évora.

He has published “O Instante plural” (Livros Horizonte); “20 Anos de Teatro e Miscigenação” Quinta Parede/Gulbenkian Foundation; “30 Years of Theatre and Young Audiences” Quinta Parede/Gulbenkian; “40 Years of Theatre” Quinta Parede/SPA; “50 Years of Theatre – Profane Miracles” Quinta Parede/SPA.

Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora

Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora is a professional puppet theater company with artistic direction by Clara Ribeiro and Filipa Mesquita and art direction by enVide neFelibata. The company was founded on April 2, 2002. In the symbiosis of a symbolic language that combines heritage and traditional legacy with contemporary society's thought and dynamics, often in a not-so-peaceful dialogue, a fundamental element emerges: the puppet. This element supports us in the search for our own cultural identity.

Our goal is to discover the aesthetic, visual, scenic, and dramatic potential of the puppet itself, as well as in its relationship with the actor, and in this discovery, explore the dramaturgy that characterizes us: to explore culture, belief, and legend allied with the city, technological exploration, and the speed of the global village. Throughout our artistic journey, we have presented various proposals to different audiences, including adults, youth, school, and family groups, as well as in basic and specialized training. One of our major commitments is the national and international tour of our projects. Decentralization, community work, partnership creation, and social and inclusive value are predominant concerns in our daily activities.

Over these couple decades, we have established the company as a contemporary artistic creation structure through dozens of show proposals presented nationally and internationally, whether they are our own creations or collaborations with other national and international cultural structures and entities. Our premise is to provide space for the creative freedom of our artistic team, ensuring the existence within the structure of various languages and diverse visions that unite in the common goal of developing the art of puppet theater. Reflection on social fragility issues and a keen eye on traditions and heritage form the basis of the Company's dramaturgy, consolidated in distinct yet simultaneously convergent perspectives.

Dialogue with diverse audiences and the involvement of creation in different contexts and spaces, as well as the intersection between entities and structures, is fundamental, creating multidisciplinary proposals aimed mainly at artistic communication with audiences. Noteworthy is our collaboration with numerous educational services in the implementation of activities in institutions such as monuments, museums, and heritage buildings.

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