Directed by Tiago Rodrigues, Teatro Nacional Dona Maria (2017), Portugal

What happens when you place center stage a figure habitually hidden away in a corner of the theatre? The result is “Sopro,” the tale of Cristina Vidal, one of the last professional prompters still working in Portugal. Her life as a prompter for over 40 years is interwoven with plays on the stages she has served, her role as the prompter in a new production, and the adventures in love and theatre of her former director. Chekhov and Molière converse through Cristina’s life story in this remarkable homage to a particular understanding of theatre—theatre as a key part of European cultural heritage, a way of thinking through who we are and how we understand our past, theatre as a way of understanding what it means to be human. “Sopro” is a remarkable piece of political theatre—timely, urgent, and important. And it offers us a brave, elegant and highly original way of thinking through the theatre’s way of thinking about itself and the world. ONE DAY ONLY! MAY 27!