Samuel Valladares , multifaceted actor, screenwriter, documentary filmmaker and clown, brings his talent to children in ” Quebra-cabeça: em busca da peça que falta “. This improvisational show, which promises to delight children with its interactivity and creativity, premieres on March 9 at Teatro O Tablado. With a rich history of outstanding performances in cinema, theater and in his recent adventure in the world of documentaries with “Storm Video ” on Globoplay , Samuel ventures for the first time in an improvisational play aimed at children, bringing all his experience to create a unique connection with children and immerse themselves in the stories created on stage.
From the stage to the silver screen, how did these two universes fit together in your career?
In fact, I have always been into theater and improvisation. I started working with cinema in parallel. But in fact, it’s the first time I’ve done an improvised play for children.
What was the biggest difference you found between working with children in a play and working with adults in films?
As I worked more with theater than with cinema (as an actor), I can speak better about the difference between performing for an adult audience and for children, in improvised plays. While adults quickly understand that it is an instant creation, and this becomes a point of interest – the fun of mistakes, good story ideas created on the spot, etc. – children take the story itself very seriously. They fully embark on the narrative, on the characters’ issues, and feel like they are active agents in the direction of things. They take the “joke” of improvisation seriously, which greatly enriches us, actors, who feel this and start to really play.
Can you tell us a little about the experience of directing your own documentary, “Storm Video “, and how it influenced your career?
It was an experience that shaped me a lot. I gained greater self-confidence to believe in my work, autonomy and proactivity to work with any work I participate in, be it cinema, theater, whatever, and a perception that, often, the richest material we have for artistic creation It is present in the most ordinary everyday life.
How did the opportunity to participate in the show “Quebra-cabeça: em busca da peça que falta” come about and what was your reaction when you received the invitation?
At first I was called to be a stand-in (“reserve” actor) to replace my friend Rafael Saraiva when needed. But the rehearsals progressed, the structure of the play was built day by day, and our directors understood that it would be better for the play to have an additional actor, so they integrated me into the fixed cast. I was already very happy being a stand-in, so I became even happier!
What most attracted you to the plot and proposal of this improvisational show for children?
Just the fact that it was a children’s improvisation attracted me a lot. Furthermore, thinking about our show, what really excites me is the openness we have for creating the characters that appear in the story. Based on the structure that was set up, we have a lot of freedom in creating characters, how to explore them and how to explore each one’s universes.
Could you share with us any memorable experiences you had during rehearsals or preparations for this play?
I remember a rehearsal we did in a hall of a building for several children. In the middle of the story, while I was giving some lines, I realized how much the children were immersed in the plot, in the problems that my character faced, and how much this affected them. This touched me and made me realize how serious the “joke” we do on stage is. The game only works if we take it seriously, just like children when they play, for example, cops and robbers.
What are the dynamics of acting in an improvisational play for children? Are there any specific challenges you face in this type of work?
I think the biggest challenge is understanding that children take the play very seriously, in the best of ways. Many times, when performing improvised plays, it is part of making “mistakes”, such as confusing the characters’ names, or taking a bad turn for the story, and all of this tends to be amusing to adults, who understand that improvisation is a great challenge and laugh when the actors share this difficulty. Children, no. They take the story very seriously, they want the storytelling game to make sense. This takes us to a very powerful place of believing in the characters, playing in a more dedicated, more honest, more alive way.
As a screenwriter yourself, how do you see the role of improvisation in the creative process of a theater piece?
I think improvisation is where you use the knowledge and techniques you already have to build something new, spontaneous, from it. Being a screenwriter helps me to have greater clarity in improvisation in moments of tying
the story, thinking about the order of the scenes, the durations, the conflicts that may arise, in short, the organization of the story.
What is it like to balance your Theater Directing studies at UFRJ with your career as an actor and screenwriter?
Quiet. I’m more or less present depending on the work I do outside of it, but I’m in no rush to graduate. I think that anyone who studies/works with art, be it theater, cinema, whatever, cannot put academic training above job opportunities, due to the difficulty we have in supporting ourselves from it.
clowning research group that you run at UFRJ and how this has contributed to your development as an artist?
This group is quite new, it’s still forming, we’ve only had a few meetings, but it’s already touched me a lot. Investigating the language of clowning , especially with a group of people that I admire so much, always makes me investigate myself, rediscover new traits, new comic possibilities, new sensibilities, and so on.