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>> Nauta is a young Galician company. A group of creators who use the disciplines of physical theatre, mask, and puppetry. They come together with the aim of creating contemporary, multidisciplinary theatre accessible to all audiences.
>> Nauta aims to be a meeting point where one can immerse oneself in the extraordinary world of art.
The company was founded in 2020 under the name Moving Compass and in 2022 it became Nauta.
>> In its three years of existence, it has four shows in its repertoire and collaborates with several European projects. All of them address current social issues that particularly affect young people and the world today, and which need to be approached with a contemporary and innovative language. Nauta focuses its work on exploring and discovering new ways of telling stories; the visual and artistic aspects of its staging; and its commitment to a theatre that defends its most ritualistic forms as a driving force to combat the dystopian world we face.
>> Their first creation, Nino&Mambrú, was born with the aim of modernizing the half-mask of Commedia dell'Arte and bringing it to the contemporary street. The work has been performed in countries such as Belgium, France, Switzerland, Spain, and Portugal, and to date has over a hundred performances.
>> In 2020, still under the name Moving Compass, they began creating their first stage show, GAIA BABA. This work redefines the tabletop puppet by adding dialogue between the puppet and the puppeteer's body. The language of this piece is music, the most universal. It is a wordless show for all ages and nationalities, as it addresses one of the most current, universal, and worrying issues of our time: the environment. On this occasion, like a fantastical tale, they portray what a fictional world plagued by garbage, where plastic is omnipresent, would be like. GAIA BABA has performed at more than ten national levels, including the Galicreques International Puppet Festival, Titirijai in 2020; Galicia Escena Pro and the Redondela Puppet Festival.
>> GAIA BABA will be restaged in 2024 under the title GAIA BABA, the Last Witch, with a new cast and script.
The universe of their third show, Tacão, an adaptation of the text by Mozambican author Mia Couto, revolves around non-normative genders and the confrontation between these and the pre-established heteronormative system. This conflict on stage is translated through the clash of masks of different textures and formats. This creation has participated in residencies at the Ártika theater in Vigo and Nave del Duende, and was performed at the Galicreques International Puppet Festival and the MALUGA Festival (Portugal) in 2021.
>> In 2022, with A BARCA DO INFERNO (The Boat of Hell), and now under the name Nauta, the company solidified its professional status. This is the first co-production with the Galician Drama Center and is the result of a residency at the City of Culture in Santiago de Compostela as part of the Clásicas Desfeitas project. Premiered at the 45th Almagro Festival, it embarks on the adventure of adapting a Portuguese classic to the demands of contemporary theater. A BARCA DO INFERNO (The Boat of Hell) is a finalist for Best Puppet and Animated Figure Show at the 2023 María Casares Awards and has been performed at the Galicreques Puppet Festival and the Titirijai Festival in 2024.
>> In 2022, Nauta premiered its first street performance, TREBOADA, in collaboration with the Trópico de Grelos batucada band. This show, featuring a cast of 20 artists including puppeteers and musicians, marks Nauta's first foray into community theater.
>> This year, they continue to develop this field through projects such as the carnival in the French city of Vitrolles, in collaboration with EMAP (Ecole Municipale d’Arts Plastiques), where the company will be responsible for the construction of large-format puppets (three to four meters tall) for the first time.
>> On the international stage, they are part of the PHONE project, a European network in which more than eight countries create festivals, shows, and activities together with the aim of promoting different minority languages through theater.
>> They have co-produced, directed, and created the masks for the show Estorias ao Lume, by the Portuguese company Krisalida Teatro, which deals with Galician-Portuguese folklore, revaluing the tradition of oral storytelling.
>> Together with EFFEA (European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists), the Galicreques International Festival, and the Teo Town Council in Santiago de Compostela, they will carry out a community theater research project with participants from the LGBTIQ+ community. This project will explore gender identity through theatrical expression and the use of masks, also considering drag as a transformative tool. This will be the company's third community theater project this year, allowing them to continue developing their own educational program.
>> In 2024, in collaboration with the CDG (Galician Center for Theater), they are co-producing *O corazón na boca* (The Heart in the Mouth), one of the works commemorating the center's 40th anniversary. The show features a cast belonging to FEGATEA (Galician Federation of Amateur Theater).
>> Nauta is an emerging company that develops its visual arts alongside illustrators, sculptors, and designers from diverse artistic fields. They continue to grow and expand their creative, community, geographical, and collaborative horizons.