Noite de Improviso + Il Trovatore

How good is it to experience different live shows and performances? Past week I had my first night of live improvisation comedy and went to my first opera ever.

Noite de Improviso @ Comedians

If you have been looking for a good live improv show, this is it! 3 guys on stage and 1 invited guest will assure that you laugh until you can’t take it no more. During approximately 1 hour and a half these guys will present you to several improv group techniques (some of them really impressive, requiring a very sharp memory), making the show really interactive with the crowd. As far as I’m concerned, maybe too interactive!!! No, it really is fine, but damn, from a crowd of two hundred people I was one the chosen targets! Basically I got to watch a guy performing Daniel Simoes as business consultant in the funniest situations picked out from the crowd ideas.

The venue – Comedians – is really impressive in the inside. You sit all around the stage in small 4 person tables, you can order different types of drinks and the food menu is really OK (mainly based on appetizers and small portions). The entrance is R$ 40 and the show will be on every Wednesday night at 9pm. Totally worth it!

Il Trovatore @ Theatro Municipal de São Paulo

I have wanted to go to an Opera since my sister got in the Conservatorio Nacional in Portugal. No better time than the season’s opening opera at Theatro Municipal. Il Trovatore is a famous four acts opera which premiered back in 1853 in Rome. It truly is a different experience. The acting and the music are both so powerful and intense that you are easily sucked into the story, even if you have a hard time understanding every piece of it. The Municipal Symphonic Orchestra of São Paulo is simply amazing, and even though it plays below the stage, it earned a round of applause as if they were as important as any of the main characters.

The Theatro Municipal of São Paulo, located in the city center, is a beautiful and historic place which definitely deserves a visit. For R$ 40 I got a decent seat (not sure if me and my girlfriend sat where we were supposed to though), and experienced some unique and truly astounding moments. Il Trovatore will be on until the 22^nd of March during different days of the week. An experience that I will repeat for sure!

"Fado - História de um Povo"

“Fado – História de um Povo” is a musical by Filipe La Feria now playing in the “Casino do Estoril”. The play tells us the story of Fado from its very beginning in the 19th century until its biggest modern symbol in Portugal – Amalia Rodrigues. The musical is organized in a way that allows you to understand the several influences that Fado had until it became what it is today. Throughout the show several tributes to Fado singers are made but unfortunately many of them I couldn’t recognize. Still, there were also several names that I knew – Maria Severa, Alfredo Marceneiro, Ary dos Santos, Carlos do Carmo and of course Amália Rodrigues.
The cast is superb and the dynamic of the show is simply amazing. There’s always so much going on in the show with the artists on stage, people coming from below the stage, or even dancers descending from the ceiling right on top of our heads. The scenarios, costumes and all the accessories used are also brilliantly created.

I would recommend this musical to every Fado lover, and for those who are not big fans of the genre, it’s a very good way to get some knowledge on the music that represents the roots of the Portuguese people.