Macao’s only Patuá-language drama group, Dóci Papiaçám, will be performing two showings of its new play What’s the Deal? this week at the Macao Cultural Centre, as part of the Macao Arts Festival. The first showing is on Friday 30 May at 8 pm, while the second showing is on Saturday 31 May at 3 pm. The play is recommended for those aged 13 and above.
Patuá theatre is a unique performing art created by the Macanese community using its endangered creole language and has been enlisted on the national Intangible Cultural Heritage list since 2021.
Dóci Papiaçám aims to preserve Patuá through original, often satirical plays performed in the language by local actors. The plays typically focus on social issues and current affairs and are written and directed by the group’s co-founder Miguel de Senna Fernandes.
[See more: Patuá way to do it with Miguel de Senna Fernandes]
Patuá is a creole language rooted in Portuguese with borrowings and adaptations from Malay, Cantonese, English, and Spanish. It was formed over the past four centuries of ethnic and cultural intermingling among the Macanese community, but by one estimate has as few as 50 native speakers today.
The play will be approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes, including one interval. The performance will be accompanied by English, Portuguese and Chinese surtitles.
Tickets are priced at 300, 250, 180 and 120 patacas and can be purchased through the Macau Ticketing Network. There is also a 24-hour ticketing hotline available at 2840 0555.
