La Mula presents ‘Manual for living things’, a visual exploration of the power and fragility of language – Fundació Joan Brossa
– The work can be seen from December 11 to 21 at the Joan Brossa Foundation’s Free Arts Center.
– The company turns the scene into a visual and philosophical game space with the text as the protagonist.
– It is the second part of a leaflet that started with the work Thaumawhich could be seen in the same space last season.
Barcelona, December 5, 2025 – The Mule present the work Manual for living beings at Liberal Arts Center of the Joan Brossa Foundationwhere it can be seen from December 11 to 21 as part of the Lost Objects cycle, the expanded program of the IF Barcelona festival, and after the good reception it had at the Barcelona Greek Festival.
The company, formed by Magda Puig Torres i Andreu Martinez Costatransforms the scene into a visual and philosophical game space, where the text becomes the protagonist to investigate the materiality of the word and how stories shape ideologies and identities. It is the second part of a pamphlet on the concept of wonder started with the work Thaumawhich could be seen last season at the Liberal Arts Centre, and which now proposes a perceptive game in which the text becomes an independent interlocutor. Inspired by stage languages such as yarn puppets, Handbook for beings vius creates a space where humor, light and color help question the codes that shape our gaze.
Premiere: Thursday, December 11 at 7:30 p.m.
Functions: from December 11 to 21. From Wednesday to Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 12 p.m.
The text as a living being
Through an ironic and visual scenography that combines references to wire puppets, the dōdegaeshi Japanese (the art of curtains) and European theatrical machinery, the work presents text-images that manifest as an autonomous voice. This text speaks of itself, claims its existence as a living being and addresses itself directly to the viewer: it speaks to us, listens to us and manipulates us, revealing its power and fragility.
At the same time, the device generates a slight distance that allows us to observe with humor how language becomes an everyday technology capable of transforming our perception and building realities, ideologies, identities and experiences. With plastic ingenuity and a vibrant staging, the text invites the viewer to question their role within the stories that inhabit the contemporary world.
The second part of a leaflet
Manual for living beings is the second part of a diptych that wants to explore the concept of wonder in the face of contemporary disaffection. The first part, Thaumawhich could be seen at the Joan Brossa Foundation’s Free Arts Center last season, investigated the body as an image and kinetic and mechanical objects and invited the audience to create a gaze that allows them to see things for the first time. In this second piece, Manual for living beingsthe company again plays with perception and does so by focusing on the text, this analogical and artisanal space, to make us rediscover the power of the word and rethink the codes of reading.
THE CRITIC HAS SAID:
“Without a doubt, one of the best works that has passed through the Greek Festival”.
Manuel Pérez Muñoz, Intermission
“La Mula refers to the possibilistic, playful, artisanal and, at the same time, lucid Brossian universe.”
Jordi Bordes, El Punt Avui
“I will not find all the words I need to describe the scenic experience, the ritual and the game you have offered me.”
Carme Canet, Recommends
“Magnificent visual game of curtains and geometric shapes”.
Santi Fondevila, Diari Ara
| USEFUL INFORMATION
From December 11 to 21 ART FILE Direction and creation: Andrew Martinez i Magda Puig |
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Performers: Andreu Martinez Costa, Magda Puig Torres, Víctor Peralta Carriqui |
MORE INFORMATION AND INTERVIEW MANAGEMENT
Diana Juanpere Dunyó
Communication and press
Liberal Arts Center – Joan Brossa Foundation
✉ djuanpere@fundaciojoanbrossa.cat
☎ 93 458 99 94
