Patricia Portela: FLATLAND

A Leafy Stage
Patricia Portela studied costume and stage design in Lisbon. Later, she continued herstudies in stage design in Utrecht. In Denmark, she studied film. In her works for the stage, Patricia Portela researches the relationship between time and space, between virtuality and reality; she researches the use of technology and its association with words or texts. Patricia also writes the texts for her performances. She has been creating her trilogy “Flatland” for a few years now.
It is a story about a two-dimensional man, who is trapped in a book. He tells us his story out of the book itself. His storyis actually a narration about reading, fantasies and desire that the world around him would become three-dimensional. But this wish is granted only when someone watches him. The performance video is used in a special way, such as with excellent editing from various scenes from history, film and television, where it creates a newreality, the world of a man who can be watched, listened to and read.

Text, images and co-ordination: Patricia Portela
Voice: Anton Skrzypiciel
Sound design: Christoph de Boeck
Graphic composition of video clips: Helder Cardoso
Layout and book programation: Irmã Lucia
Construction of book support: Antoine Vandewaude
Assistance and support: Patrícia Bateira
Production: Patricia Portela & Helena Serra
Subsidies by: Instituto Português das Artes and Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian
Co-production: Zimmer (BE), Españo do Tempo and Lugar Comum
Supported by: Casa Ferreira, Centro Nacional de Cultura, editora Fenda, EmbaixadaLomográfica, Bacardi Portugal, Tesa, Bosch, Xerox

50 minutes