O TEATRO COMO UM ESTADO DE ENCONTRO

Abstract

From Nicolas Borriaud’s theory of a “relational aesthetics”, the paper develops a concept of theatre as a state of encounter, a phenomenon that only occurs in the time-space shared between actors and spectators, conditioned by an autopoietic system; theatre is understood as a process that generates events (not finished works of art; happenings, not things) which can only happen in a relationship. This relational aspect can be strongly identified in creative scenic processes, which imply a collective work dynamic based on collaboration, a machine that provokes and organizes encounters. A rehearsal process is a social laboratory, demanding a coexistence of heterogenic and contradictory elements: autonomy and dependence living together in a system of autopoietic relationships. The concept of theatre as a state of encounter means a search for a kind of theatre-making that assumes, intensifies and expands its own relational dimension, looking for the creation of possible worlds, in an experience where ethics are not in binary opposition with aesthetics.