Ten pandemic-inspired monologues kick off National Theater of Catalonia's new season

'Decameró', 10 pandemic-inspired monologues, kicked off the National Theater of Catalonia (TNC, for its acronym in Catalan) 2020-2021 season on Thursday.

The show will be on until October 25 in TNC's smaller hall and with a 50% capacity limit in place in accordance with the latest Covid-19 restrictions.

In a nod to Boccacio's 'Decameron', which tells the tales of 10 young Florentines as they retreat to the countryside to escape the perils of the 1348 bubonic plague, TNC asked a number of playwrights, philosophers, sociologists, poets and activists for their take on the afflictions of modern-day society, with the ensuing monologues resulting in the theater's latest show.

And although the show addresses our current pandemic-stricken reality, according to art director Xavier Albertí, 'Decameró' does not intend to solely be about Covid-19. In fact, the monologues tackle a number of different issues including inequality, isolation and loneliness, or humanity's relationship with nature, among others.

The monologues include 'Fantasmes de la nit (Un nocturn)', by Narcís Comadira; 'Poesia per l’Zlatan (Manifest per un nou teatre)', by Davide Carnevali; 'La llum del futur no deixa ni per un instant de ferir-nos', by Marta Marín-Dòmine; ' Tàntal', by Dimitris Dimitriadis; ' Fam', by Najat El Hachmi; ' Saliva legal', by Cristina Morales; ' L’arboricultor', by Perejaume; 'L’esperança cega', by Gregorio Luri; 'Una visita al Museu Criminològic', by Lluïsa Cunillé; and ' L’ull de la matèria', by Valère Novarina.