A disputed scene: musical theater, society and culture in São Paulo City in the 1920s and 1930s

• Grant number: 18/26001-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor
• Effective date (Start): March 01, 2019
• Effective date (End): February 29, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - History - History of Brazil
• Principal Investigator: Walter Garcia da Silveira Junior
• Grantee: Virgínia de Almeida Bessa
• Supervisor: Monica Raisa Schpun
• Host Institution: Instituto de Estudos Brasileiros (IEB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Research place: École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (EHESS), France
• Associated to the scholarship: 16/05184-0 - A disputed scene: musical theater, society and culture in São Paulo City in the 1920s and 1930s, BP.PD

Abstract

This proposal aims to deepen the study on the presence of Italian theatrical companies, especially those of operetta and sceneggiata, in São Paulo city between 1914 and 1934. Developing one of the aspects of the postdoctoral project ongoing in Brazil, whose goal is to analyze various disputes around musical theater in São Paulo, the objective of the internship abroad is to gather information about these companies and the context of their touring in São Paulo, where some of them settled. The results of the research - which will consist mainly on fieldwork in archives in France and in Italy, bibliographical survey and research on the trajectory of the selected companies and artists - will be presented in the form of entries for a database in development as part of the research project ongoing in Brazil, as well as a study on the relationship of these companies and their repertoires with the immigrant presence in the city. The proposed activities will be carried out under the supervision of Professor Mônica Raisa Schpun, researcher in the CRBC (Centre de Recherches sur le Brésil Contemporain) at EHESS (École des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales) and a specialist in immigration movements to São Paulo city and in relations between immigration and urban life. The internship at EHESS, an institution that counts on the research infrastructure of the Huma-Num program (www.ehess.fr/fr/huma-num), will also enable further discussions on Digital Humanities, which is one of the areas of interest of this research.