El rumor del incendio
Mexican guerilleros’ burning desire for revolution is scrutinized by their children in a search for meaning. A subversive, necessary plea to remember and never forget.
Duty to Remember
In Mexico in the 1960s, young revolutionaries took up arms in a desperate attempt to change society. A few decades later, the children of those guerilleros retrace the struggle of their elders. Archeologists of meaning, Luisa Pardo, Francisco Barreiro and Gabino Rodríguez furiously delve into the past, unearthing the tarnished artefacts of recent history bathed in blood, sweat and tears. At the heart of their excavation lie the remains of an unresolved conflict.
Using documents, scale models and figurines and working with a shoestring budget nourished by unbridled imagination and an extraordinary sense of narrative, they have concocted an epic documentary theatre that sheds light on their passionate craving for rebellion, a heritage of the utopian desires of their predecessors.
With no special effects, no razzle-dazzle, the performance by this Mexican team serves as a blistering attack on our benumbed consciousness. A subversive and necessary plea not to forget.
Promising Future
Luisa Pardo and Gabino Rodríguez founded Lagartidas Tiradas al Sol (Lizards Basking in the Sun) in 2003. Shortly afterward, their company represented the city of Mexico in the Muestra nacional de teatro festival, making a very impressive début. In addition to Asalto al agua transparente and Catalina, featured at the FTA last year, they presented En el mismo barco in 2007, Noviembre and Pia in 2005 and Esta es la historia de un niño que creció y todavía se acuerda de algunas cosas in 2003. El rumor del incendio played recently at the Kunstenfestivaldesarts in Brussels, and will be at the Festival d’automne in Paris next fall.
PRODUCED BY LAGARTIJAS TIRADAS AL SOL + UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL AUTÕNOMA DE MEXICO (UNAM)
COORDINATION AND TEXT LUISA PARDO + GABINO RODRÍGUEZAVEC / WITH FRANCISCO BARREIRO + LUISA PARDO + GABINO RODRÍGUEZ DESIGN AND ICONOGRAPHIC INVESTIGATIONJUAN LEDUC VIDEO YULENE OLAIZOLA LIGHTING DESIGNMARCELA FLORES + JUANPABLO AVENDAÑO MODELS FRANCISCO BARREIRO VIDEO PERFORMANCEHAROLD TORRES + CESAR RÍOS + MARIANA VILLEGAS
PRESENTED WITH THE SUPPORT OF CONSULAT GÉNÉRAL DU MEXIQUE À MONTRÉAL
WRITTEN BY DIANE JEANTRANSLATED BY NEIL KROETSCH
LUISA PARDO + GABINO RODRÍGUEZ (MEXICO)
Committed to Social Justice
Established stage and screen actors in Mexico, Luisa Pardo and Gabino Rodríguez are also playwrights and directors, and their theatre is a reflection of their character – politically committed, rebellious and meaningful.
