Among all the possible destinations of a hypothetical journey in time and space, the protagonist of Paradox Hotel chooses to make an almost domestic leap: to return to the summer of 2009 in Lisbon. There are conflicts in the Gaza Strip and nuclear tests in Korea. An Air France plane mysteriously disappears over the Atlantic Ocean. The Planck observatory is launched into orbit, with the mission of investigating the traces of cosmic radiation emitted by the birth of the Universe. And on the day of one of the greatest total eclipses of the 21st century, two strangers meet by chance and spend the night together in a hotel. They leave at dawn never to meet again. A journey on an intimate scale, with short detours along beaches overlooking the Big Bang and rocky retreats in a lifeless distant future.
Credits
Text and direction
Alex Cassal
With
Marco Mendonça
Original score
Felipe Rocha
Dramaturgical support
Joana Frazão
Collaboration
Paula Diogo
Astronomy
Clara Sousa-Silva
Accessibility
Plataforma Terra Amarela
Light design
Tomás Ribas
Costumes
Miss Suzie
Communication
Mafalda Miranda Jacinto
Production director
Daniela Ribeiro
Production
Má-Criação
Residencies
CAMPUS Paulo Cunha e Silva, O Espaço do Tempo, Biblioteca de Marvila, Amarelo Silvestre
Má-Criação is a structure support by Câmara Municipal de Lisboa and host by Espaço Alkantara.
Alex Cassal was born in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 1967. In the 1980s, he co-founded the Porto Alegre Street Theatre Group Movement, where he searched for new directions for art in public spaces, within groups such as Ói Nóis Aqui Traveiz and Alcateia. He has a B.A. in History from the State University of Rio de Janeiro – UERJ. He is a director, playwright and performer. His works explore the relationship with the other and unveil scenic mechanisms to create spaces for encounter and artistic daring. In Brazil, he is part of the group Foguetes Maravilha, responsible for shows such as Ele Precisa Começar (2008), Ninguém Falou que Seria Fácil (2011), Síndrome de Chimpanzé (2013) and Mortos-Vivos: Uma Ex-Conferência (2017). In Brazil, Alex collaborated with numerous theatre and dance artists, such as Enrique Diaz, Felipe Rocha, Renato Linhares, Alice Ripoll, Dani Lima, Gustavo Ciríaco, Clara Kutner, Denise Stutz, Michelle Moura, Ricardo Chacal and the Dimenti group. With Alice Ripoll, he directed the dance short film Journey to the Navel of the World, shown in Uruguay, Argentina, Cuba, Mexico, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, the U.S., Canada, China and Japan. In Portugal, he worked with artists as Tiago Rodrigues, Cláudia Gaiolas, Paula Diogo, Jorge Andrade, Marco Paiva, Márcia Lança and Sofia Dias & Vítor Roriz. Recently, he created the shows As Cidades Invisíveis (2016), Tiranossauro Rex (2017), Ex-Zombies: Uma Conferência (2018), Morrer no Teatro (2019), Speed Date (2020) and Biblioteca do Fim do Mundo (2021), among others. He lives in Lisbon.