Peruvian theatre group LOT and the chaos in the world

November 2006 -

Exploring borders and spotlighting the social chaos of today are the objectives of La Otra Orilla (LOT). The Peruvian multidisciplinary theatrical group's objectives are making it an international hit. Actor Rafael Freyre: "Artistic freedom comes first and foremost for us."

La Otra Orilla – the other side of the river – was established in 1998 by theatre maker Carlos Cueva. The group brought experimental performances with dance, visual arts, architecture and music. LOT’s international breakthrough came in the spring of 2004 during the prestigious biennial Festival Iberoamericano de Teatro de Bogotá in Colombia. The Peruvian artists were applauded there for their performance Materies Material based on the philosophical text 'Ich will kein Inmich mehr sein' ('I no longer want to be an Inme') by autistic German author Birger Sellin. The author uses Inme to mean a personality focused inward.

LOT's primary goal is to perform and support 'theatrical research'. The 28 year-old Peruvian actor and architect Rafael Freyre explains: "What we mean is developing new languages and interdisciplinary approaches. And doing so based on contemporary local and global themes, such as the market economy, technology, globalisation and urbanisation. We consider theatre to be a channel for reflecting on the chaos of today's world."

The group's innovative drive is not only generated by the ideas of its founder Carlos Cueva, now 53, but can also be explained by the young age of its other members, who are primarily twenty- or thirty-something. Freyre: "Our projects are the results of intensive cooperation. There is no hierarchy during creation." The members of the audience are also treated as equals. LOT does not want to moralise. Freyre: "Artistic freedom comes first and foremost for us."

LOT receives financial support from Hivos. At the moment Rafael Freyre is receiving a master training at the Piet Zwart Institute in Rotterdam.