This set was mostly made of perishable and ephemeral elements, such as 600 ceramic stones and inflammable barbed wire, made of cotton candle-wick and paraffin. The fragility of these elements, initially perceived as potential throwing weapons or harmful barriers, was revealed throughout the performance, when each performer began to interact with the installation set.
Abrir Fogo (Open Fire, in english) was written by hand and delivered to its performers, escaping the time-consuming process of digital formatting, on the very day benches were removed from public gardens. When there were no longer any shadows in the public space, and the sun burned less fiercely on the sofa at home, where we all became activists behind our mobile-phone screens. We put on the mask of heroes sharing graphic and bloody information, donated money to the humanitarian cause, and wept. Our right to the streets was denied; the female body, age, and future were marginalised because they were deemed to be inventions.
In Abrir Fogo, voices from protests can be heard calling for the right to freedom, the right to dignity, and, above all, peace. Visual references and elements, evoquing the streets and the public space are brought into the stage in collaboration with visual artist Lea Managil, incorporated into a performance led by two performers who then use physicality as a vehicle for protest. Questions arise as to how productive a manifesto can be within the theatre space, and to what extent art can be a powerful weapon of protest. In a provocation against censorship, a protest against restrictions on freedom, and a struggle against austerity, I find myself asking: how do we reach celebration, amid guerrilla warfare, at the moment of opening fire?
In Abrir Fogo, voices from protests can be heard calling for the right to freedom, the right to dignity, and, above all, peace. Visual references and elements, evoquing the streets and the public space are brought into the stage in collaboration with visual artist Lea Managil, incorporated into a performance led by two performers who then use physicality as a vehicle for protest. Questions arise as to how productive a manifesto can be within the theatre space, and to what extent art can be a powerful weapon of protest. In a provocation against censorship, a protest against restrictions on freedom, and a struggle against austerity, I find myself asking: how do we reach celebration, amid guerrilla warfare, at the moment of opening fire?
Ana Sampaio e Maia
Original text and staging: Ana Sampaio e Maia
Cast: Marta Lapa and Melanie Ferreira
Set design: Lea Managil
Lighting design: Paulo Santos
Photography: Bruno Simão | Teaser and video recording: Eduardo Breda
Graphic design and production management: Ruy Malheiro
Executive production: Maria Rui Cunha
Production and technical operation: Hugo Nicholson | Communications: Showbuzz
Special thanks: Pedro Balazeiro and Violeta Luz
Artistic direction of Escola de Mulheres: Marta Lapa and Ruy Malheiro
@ 2026 Lea Managil all rigths reserved