Cali

From Bolivia to Colombia, crossing Peru and Ecuador, buses after buses, got stuck twice. The first time at the border between Bolivia and Peru for a strike, where the inhabitants of a village next to lake Titicaca were protesting against a gold mine opening. The second one just before Lima for another strike, but “quickly”, after 6 hours waiting, we were ready to get a bus for Guadajir, another to Quito, to Ipiales and finally to Cali. On the way to Cali, in the middle of hills and mountains, the bus stopped and the 2 drivers got out and ran in the opposite direction. All the passengers and us were looking at each other, without explanations. Once the drivers completely sweating by the run get back, told to everyone that two big box are missing from the bus, fallen down to a valley.

As soon we arrived to Cali, we met Camilo, actor and producer of the theatre company Teatro del Presagio. We met the company 6 months ago, in London; they were participating at a South American theatre festival. Cali is an incredible mixture of people and culture, from the Caribbean to Pacific coast, from the Andes to Amazonians, as the director of Teatro del Presagio said: it’s a “passage city”, where people from north and south of the country are passing and stopping here for living.

The play of Teatro del Presagio is called “Edipo, acto dramatico en un acto” is the director personal view of Oedipus, based on a contemporary Colombia. The play is really ritualistic: the shadow and the costumes are cleverly used to empathize the text and the sound effect, made by the voice and by the use of didgeridoos.

For the documentary we engage with the urban landscape of Cali, making performances for the camera in different area of the city.

We are heading to Bogotá where on the Thursday they will perform the play “Edipo” in a theatre.