First Central American Theater Festival in Nicaragua

Róger Solórzano Canales | Nov 13, 2013

During eleven days, the Central American Theatre Festival will present a variety of plays, themes, techniques and stories with the participation of artists, dramaturgist, and technicians from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. The event starts on November 15th and will also include activities in Managua at the same time.

Ruben Dario National Theatre and its stages, specially Pilar Aguirre Hall, will be the center of the event to the public. There will be presentations and encounters in other spots. You can check the agenda of presentations at our Event Calendar or below this article.

The event is organized by the Nicaraguan Cultural Forum and the National Theatre, with the support of the Swiss Cooperation and the Norwegian Embassy. "It is a tribute to those who strive to achieve the unity of Central America; if there is something that unites us is precisely the culture of our people, rather than the borders and trade," said Cairo Amador, director of the Forum during the Introductory press conference.

Salvador Espinoza, organizer of the encounter and Artistic Director of the Theatre, said that the Festival responds to the need of identifying by members of the theatre community in Central America, recently. There is people doing efforts to develop and project the theatrical art everywhere, but there is still the need to conform a circuit of theater artists, dramaturgists, theaters and government agencies to enhance and bring to the public these proposals. That’s how this festival was born as a contribution in Nicaragua, in addition to regional meetings taking place in El Salvador and Costa Rica, she said.

The festival is also a tribute to Gloria Elena Espinoza, a great exponent of the national d theatre. As part of the festival, a lot of significant events will be developed. One of them is the Central American Dramaturgist Meeting, bringing together creatives from the region, from November the 20th to the 21st, to share experiences and discuss about the genre today. There also organized an encounter of Theatre Organizations on November 15th, and the presentation of Luis Harold Agurto anthology, edited by the Forum.

Regarding the formative activities, there is an Acting Workshop from November 18th to the 22nd, taught by the professor Esteban Mihalik, for actors of at least 5 years of trajectory. An scenography workshop for the public in general will be taught by Donaldo Aguirre. If you are interested on participate you can contact the Artistic Direction of the National Theatre.

This is the summary of the activities of the Festival in November, where you can see the Central American groups participating:

Pilar Aguirre Hall at The National Theatre:

• Friday 15th: “El Marinero”, by Comedia Nacional de Nicaragua, 7:00 pm.
• Saturday 16th: “En Clave de Clown”, byl Club del Clown (Nicaragua), 6:00 pm.
• Sunday 17th: “Kin maltioxij un k'aslemal” by Hormiguitas Teatro (Guatemala), 6:00 pm.
• Monday 18th: “De cómo moría y resusitaba Lázaro, El Lazarillo”, by Teatro Taller (Honduras), 7:00 pm.
• Tuesday 19th: “El Viaje”, by Lleca Teatro de León (Nicaragua), at Parque Subterraneo, 7:00 pm.
• Wednesday 20th: “La Frontera”, by Gurpo Justo Rufino Garay (Nicaragua), 7:00 pm.
• Thursday 21st: “Respuestas para un Menú”, by Los del Quinto Piso (El Salvador), 7:00 pm.
• Friday 22nd: “A esa hora y en esos lugares”, by Quiebra Plata and Oscurana Teatro (Nicaragua), 7:00 pm.
• Saturday 23rd: “Pinocho”, by Compañía Profesional de Teatro (Nicaragua), 6:00 pm.
• Sunday 24th: “El Ogrito”, by Génesis Ensamble Teatro (Costa Rica), 6:00 pm.
• Monday 25th: “De Macho a Macho”, by Compañía Teatral Campesina de Matagalpa (Nicaragua), at the Main Hall of the National Theatre, 7:00 pm.