The tragic as scenic matter

• Grant number: 22/02627-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Start date: July 14, 2022
• End date: January 13, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Linguistics, Literature and Arts - Arts - Theatre
• Principal Investigator: Vinicius Torres Machado
• Grantee: Vinicius Torres Machado
• Host Investigator: Christel Stalpaert
• Host Institution: Instituto de Artes (IA). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Ghent University (UGent), Belgium

Abstract

This project, for obtaining a grant for research at the Faculty of Art and Philosophy, at Ghent University (Belgium), aims to carry out theoretical-practical and interdisciplinary research: concepts and theories extracted from classical studies and of New Materialism, which will be tested in the artistic laboratory. This will be done in order to investigate the emotions generated by the material elements of a possible contemporary tragic scene. The work will be carried out in partnership with the S:PAM group, whose research areas are history, ecology and practice. It is intended to investigate how the tragic elements of the scene (opsis), through the emotional impact on the audience (psuchagogia), enable the emergence of a different sensitivity towards the vitality of the matter. In order to do so, we intend to focus on: a bibliographic review on the materiality of ancient Greek theatre and on approaches to the concepts of opsis and psuchagogia in classical treatises; bibliographic review on New Materialism studies; field research at archaeological sites and museums in Greece and Turkey; participation in the S:PAM Group meetings and in classes at Ghent University and realization of creative research with the artist-researcher Adriana LaSelva, a PhD member of the S:PAM group. As a result of this process, the objective is to share a scenic exercise in a public event, the writing of two scientific articles and the creation of an open virtual archive, making all the researched materials publicly available. (AU)