Limbo
Prague Crossroads Festival
Basic information
The New Stage
Approximate running time1 hour 15 minutes, no intermission
LanguageIn Portuguese, surtitles in Czech, English
Q&A after the performance in the New Stage's foyer.
Victor de Oliveira – actor and director known from various important european stages – comes to terms with his own roots in this introspective monodrama. His grandfathers are European and African, his great-grandparents were Portuguese jews, Indians and Chinese. He opens up the theme of individual identity as a fixed point and rescue from the imaginary limbo of lost souls and stories.
Cast
- 2024-2025
Creatives
About
His grandfathers are European and African, his great-grandparents were Portuguese jews, Indians and Chinese. Victor de Oliveira has a complex family history that makes him proud of his multiple identities; but it has not always been all that simple. Limbo is an “autofiction”, an intimate show that, through his author’s biography, touches on the themes of origin, slavery, colonialism and exile: often taboo matters in Portugal as in many other western democracies.
In an intense solo performance rooted in a mosaic of personal memories, interviews, readings and encounters, the director-actor questions the man in a kaleidoscope of references, the reasons for the denial of history, the disputes of collective memory, and the experience of growing up in uncertainty.
In 2022, Limbo was awarded two prestigious prizes that are annualy awarded by the Authors Portuguese Society (Sociedade Portuguesa de Autores) – the Best Performance and the Best Represented Portugese Text of 2022.
Victor de Oliveira
Victor de Oliveira is an actor and director born in Mozambique in 1971. He began his theatre career in Lisbon, later attending the Conservatoire national supérieur d'art dramatique in Paris. After graduating, he worked in France, Portugal, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, and England. Parallel to his work as an actor and director, he is developing a training program for young actors, especially in the field of African dramaturgy. He teaches at the Institut d'études théâtrales of the Université Sorbonne-Nouvelle and at ERACM (École régionale d'acteurs de Cannes et Marseille).
Official photos: Joana Linda
Co-production: Teatro do Bairro Alto (Lisbon), Théâtre National de Bretagne (Rennes) with the support of: Roundabout.LX (Lisbon), Le CENTQUATRE-PARIS, La Colline – Théâtre National (Paris), Le Grand T – Théâtre de Loire-Atlantique (Nantes)
Thanks to: Catherine Blondeau, Edgar de Oliveira, Marta Angelozzi, Ana Maria Akau, Marisa Chinak, Bick Yuen Chinak, Joaquim Abreu, José Cam Fok, Vitor Vargilal, Francisco de Oliveira, Maria Virgínia Monteiro, Antonio de Almeida Mendes
Photo and video gallery
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Practical information
Where to buy tickets
When purchasing online, you can get an e-ticket. You can pick up printed tickets in person at the box offices of the National Theatre.
The National Theatre sells tickets up to 6 months in advance - currently for January–June 2025.
Sales always start on the 1st day of the month at 9am, except in January when pre-sales do not start until the 2nd day due to a public holiday.
What to wear?
By their appearance, attire and behaviour, the audience is obliged to adhere to the accustomed practice expected from them when attending a theatre performance.
Parking at the National Theater