Improvisational theater as a performance art form has a relatively recent history in Brazil. It began to gain traction in 2001 with the premiere of Jogando no Quintal in São Paulo, a clown-based production directed by Marcio Ballas, which paved the way for a more visible improv movement in the country. From there, improv spread to Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte, where the International Festival of Improv Theater (FIMPRO) was held in 2008.
In Brazil, although its arrival was late, improv’s reception was fruitful because its language resonated with performance practices already closely linked to play, humor, direct audience interaction, and live invention. It has also appeared on television (also with Ballas).
Authors and Books
In its short history, the Brazilian improv scene has not yet reached the same density as in other countries with more established circuits. Even so, its bibliography shows a comprehensive combination of practice, theory, pedagogy, and history, making the country a very interesting publishing hub for anyone wanting to study improvisation in Portuguese and from its own perspectives. Most of the books are only available in Brazilian Portuguese, but some have been translated into Spanish and/or English.
Augusto Boal
Author of Games for Actors and Non-Actors and The Rainbow of Desire, Augusto Boal was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1931 and was a Brazilian playwright, director, and theorist, widely known for developing the Theatre of the Oppressed. Although not strictly part of the contemporary improv-performance circuit, his work is a crucial reference for any mapping of improvisation in Brazil because he positioned play, audience participation, and stagecraft as tools for transformation and theatrical thought, and it is essential in any theatre library.
Sandro de Cássio Dutra
Sandro de Cássio Dutra, from São Paulo, although with connections to Rio de Janeiro, works on improvisation from an academic perspective focused on Brazil, especially in dialogue with Boal and Burnier, and has written the following thesis: Linhagens e noções fundamentais de improvisação teatral no Brasil y Improvisação teatral e público.
Mariana Lima Muniz
Improvisação como espetáculo is one of the most frequently cited titles for studying the history and consolidation of improvisation as a performance format in Brazil. Its contribution is important because it analyzes improvisation not only as an acting technique, but also as a performance experience created with and for the audience.
Claudio Amado
Author of two simple, brief, and very practical works: Os Princípios da Improvisação: 40 Jogos para Aprender a Improvisar (recently translated into Spanish) and Improvisação Avançada: O Formato Longo. He is an actor, director, improviser, and teacher at Teatro de Nada (Rio de Janeiro) and is especially involved in the training and dissemination of long form.
Zeca Carvalho
Zeca Carvalho was born in Rio de Janeiro but currently lives in Coimbra, Portugal. He is the author of O Corpo no Teatro de Improviso (The Body in Improv Theater), an intriguing work on physicality in performance. He is a leading figure in Portuguese-Brazilian improv theater, with artistic, pedagogical, and research work, as well as pioneering initiatives such as the creation of festivals and collectives dedicated to improvisation.
Luana Proença
Luana Proença is an artist from Brasília, with a doctorate in theater, a master’s degree in arts, and a professor with extensive experience in performance, improvisation, physical theater, and stage pedagogy. She is the author of Nossa direçao em jogo, (Our Direction in Play), a book that highlights the importance of direction within the improvisation triangle (acting, dramaturgy, directing). She has also contributed to the collaborative essays The SIN: Essays on Improv y ¿Alguna vez te has preguntado si…? Preguntas para la docencia de Impro (Have You Ever Wondered If…? Questions for Teaching Improv).
Luiz Felipe Martins
Luiz Felipe Martins is a creator of improvised humor formats and founder of Cachorrada Impro Clube (Rio de Janeiro). He is the author of the recently published Improvisação Teatral Descomplicada.
Hortência Campos Maia
Hortência Campos Maia, professor in Minas Gerais, member of the research group LADI – Laboratório de Dramaturgia da Improvisação and member and founder of the UMA Company. His book, Improvisação Teatral com Crianças: O Sistema Impro na Escola, is an interesting work that transfers improvisation to the pedagogical and school field. His doctoral research focuses precisely on the impro system with children within basic education.
What are your essentials?
No Comments