Victor Hugo Pontes brings to the stage three dancers imagined by the writer Gonçalo M. Tavares for this new creation. Abelard, Adler, and Hadrian are The Three Brothers: when they meet in that non-place, they search for traces of their parents, mark their absence with chalk, wash themselves, eat together at the table, carry each other’s bodies in a ritualized sacrifice, carry one another on their shoulders, live on the run, and engage in the dangerous game of encountering the past. Abelard, Adler, and Hadrian attempt to connect themselves to the earth and survive each other’s existence, even if that existence has been drilled full of holes, rolled into a bundle of clothes, or transported in a wheelbarrow.
Biography – Victor Hugo Pontes
Victor Hugo Pontes—teacher, director, set designer, and most widely recognized as a choreographer—was born in 1978 in Guimarães and lives in Porto. His work reflects his multidisciplinary training in visual arts at the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Porto and in theatre at Balleteatro, complemented by later studies in dance through the Choreographic Research and Creation course at Fórum Dança. He also completed a Theatre Directing course at the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, led by the British company Third Angel, as well as the Project Thierry Salmon – La Nouvelle École des Maîtres, directed by Pippo Delbono in Belgium and Italy.
In 2000, he founded Nome Próprio – Cultural Association, a structure for which he served as artistic director until 2025. His choreographic works, characterized by the combination of dance, theatre, and music, make use of complex scenography, expressive movement, and texts adapted from literary works, creating a distinctive and singular language within Portuguese contemporary dance.
He has developed projects with a wide range of casts, working with performers both with and without formal training in the performing arts and from different age groups, exploring an inclusive and diverse artistic universe. Throughout his career, he has collaborated with artists such as Jorge Andrade, Marco Martins, Joana Craveiro, Sara Carinhas, Joana Gama, Manuela Azevedo, and Hélder Gonçalves. He was assistant director to Nuno Cardoso between 2004 and 2014.
His work has been widely presented nationally, in venues such as TNSJ, TMPorto, and CCB, and internationally in countries including Germany, Belgium, Brazil, Spain, France, Italy, and the Netherlands. He was nominated for the SPA Awards in the category “Dance – Best Choreography” with A Ballet Story and The Three Brothers, and in 2019 he won in that category with Margem. He was also part of the DanceWeb programme at the ImPulsTanz Festival, as a fellow of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. In 2024, Há Qualquer Coisa Prestes a Acontecer was considered by the newspaper Público as one of the 10 best shows of the year. Since 2025, he has been the artistic director of Teatro Nacional São João.
Artistic Credits
Artistic Direction: Victor Hugo Pontes
Original Text: Gonçalo M. Tavares
Performance: Dinis Duarte, Paulo Mota, and Valter Fernandes
Original Music: Joana Gama and Luís Fernandes
Set Design: F. Ribeiro
Lighting Design: Wilma Moutinho
Technical Direction, Sound Design and Operation: João Monteiro
Costumes: Cristina Cunha and Victor Hugo Pontes
Artistic Consultancy: Madalena Alfaia
Subtitling Operation: Mariana Lourenço
Nome Próprio
Artistic Direction: Daniela Cruz
Production and Touring: Andreia Fraga
Executive Production: Nuna Reis
Residency Support: O Espaço do Tempo, Circolando, Instável – Centro Coreográfico, and Centro Cultural Vila Flor
Co-production
Nome Próprio, Casa das Artes de Vila Nova de Famalicão, Cineteatro Louletano, São Luiz Teatro Municipal, Teatro Municipal do Porto, Teatro Viriato
Nome Próprio is a resident structure at Teatro Campo Alegre, within the Teatro em Campo Aberto programme, and is supported by the Portuguese Republic – Ministry of Culture / Directorate-General for the Arts.
♿ Accessible seats for people with reduced mobility are available at the António Pinheiro Municipal Theatre box office.
❗Entry is not permitted after the start of the performances, and no refunds will be given for tickets, in accordance with current legislation (Decree-Law No. 23/2014 of February 14, amended by paragraph 5 of article 10 of Decree-Law No. 90/2019, of July 5).
❗Children under 3 years of age are not allowed entry, as stipulated in Decree-Law 23/2014 of February 14, in its current wording (article 26).