Welcome to Madrid

Alba Sarraute has adapted and directed a show that fuses William Shakespeare's great tragedy, Othello, with circus arts. There will be just two performances of this show at Teatro Circo Price, on 4 and 5 November.

The plot draws on the original story, where Othello, a Moorish general serving the Republic of Venice and the governor of Cyprus, returns to the capital city after defeating the Ottoman Empire. Cassio stood out on the battlefield and was promoted for his military successes. Iago, sick with jealousy, devises a plan to discredit him.

Iago asks Cassio to speak with Desdemona, Othello's wife, to intercede with her husband on his behalf. When he finds out Desdemona and Cassio have met, Othello becomes jealous, and when he is confronted with Iago’s false evidence of her infidelity, the general loses his mind and cannot contain his thirst for revenge. 

In this show, through acrobatics, balances and music, characters express their feelings and perceptions of reality with their body, making them more intense and original. Other techniques are also incorporated into the production, such as the teeterboard, the Cyr wheel, and clowning to portray the most famous scenes from the play.

Alba Sarraute is an actress, clown, musician, and acrobat who trained at the Aula de Teatre de Mataró, and later at the Escuela de Circo Rogelio Rivel in Barcelona and the Acadèmie Fratellini Contemporary Circus School in Paris. She has worked with companies such as Hopla Circus and Animalario, has led groups such as Animal Religion and Rojo estándar, and has collaborated with Clowns Without Borders.

Cast and Creative Team:

• Adaptation and direction - Alba Sarraute
• Playwright - William Shakespeare
• Staging - Laia Sanmartin
• Choreography - Berta Pascual
• Stage design - Montse Pons
• Production - Camaleònica Produccions
• Lighting Technician - Joaquim Aragó
• Sound Technician - Ton Mentruit
• Musical composition - Furmi Gómez
• Composition La Peste- Jorge Sarraute
• Musical direction - Jordi Claret
• Photography and video - El Gato Productions

Cast:

• Traveller - Alba Sarraute (acrobatics, clowning, teeterboard)
• Othello- Martí Soler (hand-to-hand, knife-throwing, Cyr wheel, piano, and trumpet) 
• Desdemona - Berta Pascual (dance and actress) and Anna Pascual (Chinese mast, hand-to-hand, and piano)
• Iago - Tomeu Amer (acrobatics, free standing ladder, teeterboard, and German wheel)
• Cassio - Adrià Montanya (balance, verticals, and acrobatics)
• Emilia - Laura Martí (singing, clowning, and guitar)
• Soldier 1 - Jordi Claret (cello)
• Soldier 2 - Noè Escolà (saxophone)

Approximate duration: 1 hour and 5 minutes.

Recommended age 12+.