Zürcher Theater Spektakel

The Mapa Teatro, founded 25 years ago by Rolf and Heidi Abderhalden, is one of Latin America›s most prominent and innovative theatre groups. In 2005 the festival presented three of their experimental multi-media works. «Los santos inocentes» is based on video research they made in Columbia, a country ridden by armed conflict. The Day of the Holy Innocents is a religious holiday in honour of the children slaughtered by order of King Herod. In Guapi, a region inhabited by Afro-Columbians and bitterly fought over by state troops, paramilitaries and guerillas, this celebration has become a bizarre whipping ritual of flagellation. The video footage of this cathartic excess is contrasted with a birthday party on stage. A touching theatrical collage of fiction and documentary that reflects the omnipresent violence and its effects. (ron/esc)