A Tempest in Rio
On the eve of the Olympics, Shakespeare\u2019s mix of sex, politics and intrigue plays out in Rio. 400 years after Shakespeare\u2019s death, his plays have come to Brazil and are being played to packed houses in front of enthralled audiences who respond instinctively to their passionate mix of political corruption, violence, sex, death and the supernatural.
This summer, a unique collaboration between international directors, academics and Brazilian actors has brought one of Shakespeare\u2019s greatest plays, The Tempest \u2013 in which he writes about the \u2018brave new world\u2019 of the Americas \u2013 to Rio de Janeiro.
This programme hears from Suellen Carvalho, who will play Miranda in The Tempest. High in the hills overlooking Copacabana she explains how she turned her back on the drug gangs to take up Shakespearean acting. Her brother was killed in gang warfare and so her family has suffered from the violence that plagues the city of Rio. It was Shakespeare that helped her escape. \u201cI thought the language of Shakespeare was very difficult at first\u201d, she says, \u201cBut when I heard Shakespeare being spoken by black actors from the favelas (shanty towns) of Rio then it\u2019s another language. I thought, I can do that too.\u201d
For Suellen it has been an extraordinary journey. As a black actress she had no hope of playing the part that she saw as exclusively for white performers. \u201cWhen I was told I would play Miranda I was amazed! Black actors in Brazil are normally given the roles of the house servant, prostitute or drug dealer.\u201d
Presented by Professor Jerry Brotton, Queen Mary College, University of London
Image: Suellen Carvalho, Credit: Mark Rickards