Staging Slavery through Historiographic Metatheatre: Lorena Gale’s Angélique and Suzan-Lori Parks’s Venus

Valentina Rapetti (Università di Macerata)

Abstract

Il saggio analizza due opere teatrali riconducibili al genere del metateatro storiografico. Angélique dell’attrice, regista e drammaturga afrocanadese Lorena Gale ripercorre la storia di Marie-Joseph Angélique (1705-1734), la schiava nera processata e giustiziata con l’accusa di aver appiccato l’incendio che nel 1734 distrusse gran parte dell’insediamento coloniale francese di Montréal. Venus della drammaturga afroamericana Suzan-Lori Parks verte attorno alla figura di Saartjie Baartman (1789-1815), la donna nera originaria dell’attuale Sudafrica che venne esibita in Europa con l’appellativo di “Venere ottentotta”. Sebbene sia Gale sia Parks operino nell’ambito del metateatro storiografico, la rimodulazione che ne propongono è influenzata dal ruolo assegnato alla schiavitù nelle narrazioni dominanti del Canada e degli Stati Uniti d’America.

DOI: 10.17456/SIMPLE-230

Parole chiave: historiographic metatheatre, Lorena Gale, Angélique, Suzan-Lori Parks, Venus.

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