A Arte Secreta do Ator is a high-quality professional residence with Eugenio Barba and Julia Varley on theatre anthropology. Lasting four days, it has been organised every year since 2008 by Cia. YinsPiração Poéticas Contemporâneas in Brasília (Brazil) for only sixteen active actors and ten observers, directors and scholars from Brazil and the rest of the world.
In addition to the basic principles of theatre anthropology as well as acting and dramaturgical processes, A Arte Secreta do Ator offers lectures, international performances and work demonstrations, debates, barters, film presentations, poetry soirées and book launches.
During the residence, it is possible to follow the thinking of Eugenio Barba and Julia Varley, from the perspective of theatre anthropology, while they work on the development of scenic material presented by the participating actors. The training includes physical and vocal actions as well as the relationship between the dramaturgy of the director, the author and the actor during the process of developing and selecting the final material for performance.
From 2008 to 2020, the training residence was attended by actors and directors from all the Brazilian states and from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, France, Germany, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Spain, Uruguay and Venezuela.
With a different theme for each session, A Arte Secreta do Ator seeks various paths for the creation of a theatre dramaturgy: in 2008 “A Dolls’ House” by Henrik Ibsen; in 2009 “Suddenly in the Depths of the Forest” by Amos Oz; in 2010 “The Flower of Ages”, with its reference to poetry by Persian Omar Khayyam; in 2011 “Love Stories”; in 2012 “A Smiling Woman, Carrying a Burden on Her Shoulders, Moves towards the Abyss”; in 2013 “The Architecture of Sunset”; in 2014 “Who Will Pay for Coffin and Flowers if I Die of Love?”; in 2015, “From Joining Mouths Came Foam. From a Still Moment Came Drama”; in 2016 “Memory Flies Far Away with Autumn Birds”; in 2017 “The Red Clouds of Ithaca”; in 2018, “Blood is Sold, Blood is Bought”; in 2019 “Flight and its Roots”.
In 2020, due to the pandemic, the first online session of A Arte Secreta do Ator was held with the theme “Principles of transformation: starting points to find what you are not searching for”.
Cia. YinsPiração Poéticas Contemporâneas was created by Luciana Martuchelli in 2002 and focusses on the technical training of the actor, on mythology and the states of male and female archetypal representation. Filipe Lima and Juliana Zancanaro are among the long-time collaborators.