The Smallest Stage: South West play given new life in Brazil
An award-winning play developed in the South West returns to the stage with a new Portuguese-language production in São Paulo, Brazil.
The Smallest Stage is an autobiographical story by Manjimup-based artist Kim Crotty.
While imprisoned in the UK for growing cannabis and determined to maintain a connection with his three and five-year-old sons, Crotty began writing children’s stories. He wrote 47 hand-illustrated stories of superheroes, and the characters became childhood icons for the boys.
Crotty shared these stories, coupled with his own experiences of incarceration, with South West artists at BREC’s inaugural Artist Retreat at Donnelly River Village in 2019. Over the next two years, Crotty worked with BREC and a WA creative team to develop The Smallest Stage, with Perth Festival later joining as a co-commissioning partner.
The journey of The Smallest Stage from early development to premiere production was supported at different stages by Creative Australia, the Australian Government’s Regional Arts Fund, Lotterywest and the Western Australian Government through its ‘Made in WA’ Regional Arts Investment Program.
The show made its world premiere at BREC in February 2022, then transferred to the State Theatre Centre of WA for Perth Festival. It went on to win the Performing Arts WA Award for Best Mainstage Theatre Production.
With the Australian arts industry still reeling from the impacts of lockdowns, The Smallest Stage did not tour further. BREC Executive Director and producer of the premiere production, Fiona de Garis, said the new translation and Brazilian production marked an exciting milestone for both the artist and the region.
“The team really wanted this work to tour back in 2022. The play has a whole lot of heart, and we knew audiences elsewhere would love it as much as they did in WA. So it was a wonderful surprise to receive an enquiry about the rights to the show from Brazil four years later.”
“When Kim first shared his story with us at Donnelly River, none of us could have imagined that seven years later it would be translated into Portuguese and produced in Brazil. Having a Brazilian producer discover the play and invest in creating their own production is a remarkable outcome for Kim – and a wonderful moment for everyone who helped bring The Smallest Stage to life.”
The work has been translated into Portuguese by Brazilian production company Elephante Produções. After a year and a half of searching for an international script to stage, producer Paula Picarelli said The Smallest Stage was the only one to affect her emotionally.
“We were touched by the way the text addresses the issue of fatherhood. A father makes a mistake, goes to jail, and the way he manages his relationship with his children from there. And the honesty with which Kim [Crotty] presents and exposes himself.”
The translated production stars acclaimed Brazilian television, film and theatre actor Vladimir Brichta in his first solo stage performance and is directed by Luiz Felipe Reis.
The story of a parent and child being separated by imprisonment is a personal one for Brichta too. His mother was held as a political prisoner by the military dictatorship which ruled Brazil in the 1970s.
Crotty said the translation process has been an interesting one to navigate.
“It’s an act of letting go, of trusting the decision-making and artistic integrity of Elephante’s creative team. They needed to make some changes because culture doesn’t translate like language,” Crotty said.
One change is the title, with the work to be presented in Brazil as The Smallest Stage in the World. The creative team is also exploring weaving elements of Brichta’s own story into the work.
With funding from BREC and the WA Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport, Crotty will travel to Brazil to attend performances and participate in an artist talk during the season.
“The Smallest Stage was successful in WA, and now internationally. That’s not a benchmark for works produced here in the South West, but I hope it demonstrates what’s possible when there are opportunities and support for local artists.”
The Smallest Stage in the World will debut at Teatro Vivo in São Paulo, Brazil, on 16 October, with Kim Crotty reflecting on the experience in a conversation with Fiona de Garis at BREC on 7 November.