Since we are storytelling... let’s tell one of the oldest stories in the world! This is what the theatre director proposes for his very first production at the Grec Theatre and who opens this year’s festival edition.
Between the Tigris and Euphrates at that point where Western civilization appeared and which is, at the same time, the door to the Orient, one of the oldest stories in the world was born. The Sumerian epic poem depicts the life of Gilgamesh, King of the city of Uruk, from around 2.700 BC. Among the clay tablets that appeared in the ancient ruins of Nineveh, and in other areas of the Middle East, some fragments of a work were found; The Poem of Gilgamesh, which contains some of the most popular stories in the Western world, among them the notorious episode of the Great Flood. This is the story of a man whose wish was to defy death and who dreamt of immortality. However, this story of friendship and of descent into hell has passed through so many hands, has so many versions and has been narrated by so many mouths in different languages that not just one true version exists but many. Hence, today, the story can be told with a certain freedom, like Oriol Broggi, artistic director at La Perla 29 does, in a large format staging that promises to transport the stage at the Grec Theatre back to the first moments of our civilisation.
A sandy floor, side lighting, the sunset, dance and movement and guitars that remind us of the fact that we are beside the Mediterranean Sea... These are elements that La Perla 29 has often included in its performances and which on this occasion, also form part of the show, and enhances Montjuïc stage’s already telluric appearance. The text will be told in a sober and tranquil setting, ideal to be listened to whilst under the starry sky, with an exceptional cast of actors and actresses willing to offer us a different version of the story, as tranquil as it is full of mystery.
A co-production of Grec 2018 Festival de Barcelona and La Perla 29
