Já International Theatre launched its autumn season with the double bill VORTEX, comprised of two English-language plays, Death and the Maiden and Nightfall, both adapted and directed by the talented playwright and String Theory aficionado Suresh Nampuri. Known for going to Prazeres Cemetery to develop his theatrical ideas, Suresh writes scripts that have been described as “those that make people want to kill themselves.” So it’s no wonder that he has been able to pivot between playwrighting and directing two new plays currently on at Teatro do Bairro, and producing and acting in classics like Macbeth on an open-air stage.
These two plays first debuted in Lithuania at the Interdisciplinary Arts Festival in September of 2024 and, thanks to Theatre the in Palm Roadshow, co-funded by Europa Creativa, they have been brought home to Lisbon, where they were originally adapted, to show until the 27th of October.
NIGHTFALL
According to Suresh, this play gets top billing because “It’s best that people come fresh and see what happens.” An original science fiction play inspired by the works of Isaac Asimov, Nightfall follows the final days on the planet Lagaash, which is orbited by seven suns that prevent nightfall. However, an extraordinary event that occurs once every 10,000 years is imminent: for the first time, all suns will set simultaneously, and darkness will descend upon Lagaash. The story unfolds as the inhabitants confront fear, denial, resistance, and, ultimately, hope. Some cope by playing with cups and juggling balls, and others, by hiding a sinister secret in plain sight.
DEATH AND THE MAIDEN
This adaptation of Ariel Dorfman’s powerful drama brings together three aging survivors of a bygone fascist regime. It follows protagonist Paulina Salas, a former political prisoner from an unspecified Latin American country, who endured rape at the hands of her captors. Among them is a sadistic doctor whose face she never saw. During the assaults, the doctor played Schubert’s String Quartet No. 14, known as Death and the Maiden, a piece that lends the play its title. Over the course of one intense night, the characters confront the buried choices, transgressions, and suppressed compulsions that haunt them from an oppressive past.
Overall, the cast and crew for both shows gave it all they had. Bringing these heavy themes to light isn’t an easy job, especially as the dialogue contained some tricky tongue twisters at times, so kudos to all involved. Atlas wasn’t feeling suicidal on opening night, but perhaps it was an off day for the scriptwriter.
