more interspecies performance

[Aida Jordao]

Here’s one more about fish (and no, it’s not because I’m Portuguese):
Teatro O Bando (Portugal) has a history of performing with live  
animals as characters whose fate affects the storyline. In 1984 when I  
worked with the group we performed a play about the economic crisis on  
the beach and threatened to kill a duckling for food unless someone  
fed us!
But surprisingly the most controversial use of an animal by O Bando  
was where a character caught a trout (freshwater) and gutted it and  
grilled it on stage. Now, you’d think that was a spectacle often seen  
and enjoyed by my Luso compatriots but a huge protest ensued. Within  
the proscenium, the protection of the animal was demanded.
Aida

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