Experimental recreation practices: Restaging Constança Capdeville’s musical theatre work Don’t, Juan

Abstract

The recreation or re-enactment of twentieth-century avant-garde musical theatre works involves a set of epistemological and methodological issues that can be addressed through practice-based procedures informed by archaeological, ethnographic and experimental perspectives. This article presents a discussion about the relevance of integrating these perspectives, departing from their application in a specific case study, the recreation of Don’t, Juan (1985), an experimental musical theatre work by the Portuguese composer, pianist and percussionist Constança Capdeville (1937‐92). This research proposes the blending of archaeology with the living experience of performance as an approach to a reconstruction project, with methods such as performative ethnography, experimental practice and embodied knowledge through performance operating as effective tools.