Teatro de la Laboral

Four men on the stage; one of them is actor/director John Romão, the other three are Brazilian prostitutes, immigrants in the streets of Lisbon, and from there to the stage. The faces of the four are interchangeable; all of them have the same face, all are covered with the same mask: a perfect reproduction of the facial features of John Romão.

The mask protects, it grants impunity while achieving facial perfection: total equality between the degrader and the degraded, between the bodies who offer themselves for sale and the body that hires them.

Controversy and shocked scandal follow and single out the work of John Romão. Virulent in his exploration of uncomfortable subject matters such as the obscenity, the violence, the fragility of young flesh; or the decadent ugliness of the body, Romão outdoes himself in Velocidad Máxima (which takes its inspiration from Voracidad Máxima, a video installation by Dias & Reidweg). Here, he vents his rage on the relationship between sexuality and economy, power and exploitation, on the role of the artist in the art market.

John Romão, actor, director and performer, is interested in exploring themes such as youth, obscenity, power, violence or the decay of the body. To this end he often presents individuals from socially outcast groups on stage. He has worked in the theatre with Jorge Andrade, Francisco Salgado, Marcos Barbosa, Jean-Paul Bucchieri, Harvey Grossman and Rodrigo García (La Carnicería Teatro), with whom he worked as assistant director in _Arrojad mis cenizas sobre Mickey _(2006), and in Cruda. Vuelta y vuelta. Al punto. Chamuscada. (2007). He has directed pieces such as Hippolytus (2009), The blood’s direction (2008), Skaters (2008), Why can I be me (2005-2006), and Landscape (2006). His ventures in the world of cinema include work with such important directors as João Pedro Rodrigues, Sérgio Brás D’Almeida, or the veteran, Manoel de Oliveira.