Martha Foz

This is my first premiere as a playwright, directed by Rita Terranova and starring Heidi Fauth. I have been writing theater for over thirty years, although my early works remained tucked away in a drawer. In 2022, Rita invited me to design the sound for Babel Cocina, and from that experience, I began to write again. She is primarily responsible for my transition from a secret author to an active playwright, says Guillermo Pintos to Ámbito.

Pintos is the author of "Martha Foz. Crimes and Demons", which will premiere on Saturday, August 1, at 8:30 PM, at El Camarín de las Musas (Mario Bravo 960). The show is directed by Rita Terranova, features Heidi Fauth in the lead role, and has art direction by Vanesa Abramovich.

"Martha Foz tells the story of a crime reporter from the sixties who is accused of a strange crime. Another, much more macabre story overlaps with this plot, which is best not anticipated. The play explores different forms of crime and justice, confronted with some of the most primal human impulses," explains the author.

Written for a single performer, the piece requires Fauth to embody the protagonist and several supporting characters. It also alternates between different eras and includes minor stories within the main narrative.

"I am drawn to multiple structures," clarifies the author. "The challenge was to ensure that the stories did not appear as independent episodes, but rather advanced towards a single revelation. The play was awarded at the Ibero-American Dramaturgy Contest Carlos Schwaderer. Previously, another of my texts had received an award in Lanciano, Italy."

The procedure of concentrating multiple characters in a single performer has precedents such as "Macbeth Room", an adaptation of William Shakespeare's classic created and starred by Pompeyo Audivert, and more recently "Vanya", a version of "Uncle Vanya" performed by Paulo Brunetti, directed by Oscar Barney Finn.

Pintos, however, explains that the format arose from the writing itself and not from those precedents: "This is my first solo performance. Martha Foz was born as a first-person narrative, close to a novella, and that initial voice determined the theatrical form. Although it may sound immodest, I am not one to follow trends or fashions. I am very interested in the crime genre: I have read a lot of narrative and seen a lot of cinema, although I know fewer examples in theater."

The initial idea emerged during a conversation with Terranova. "Rita spoke to me about a Spanish crime reporter. That woman was never accused of a crime, and her life has no relation to Martha's story, but she was the trigger. I preferred not to investigate too much about her because I did not want to write a biographical play or reconstruct a real case. I was interested in inventing."

The author notes that his writing is guided by the development of action and changes in perspective: "I am interested in telling stories where things happen, and each situation modifies the previous one. I seek to make the audience believe they are watching one story and, little by little, discover they are facing another. I usually work with ordinary people confronted with extraordinary situations."

Although Pintos has been a frequent theatergoer and reader since his youth, he acknowledges a strong cinematic influence. "The play has elements of crime and horror. That relationship with cinema also appears in the lighting, the soundtrack, and the art direction. The intention is not to imitate a film but to use those resources to build the atmosphere and accompany the changes in time, space, and character."

Pintos has worked for many years as a music critic and also took on the sound design for the show, a task he had previously performed in "Babel Cocina". "Rita and I understand each other very well. Working with her is a constant learning experience. She has great precision in organizing the staging and directing the actors. In this play, that precision is fundamental, as Heidi must transition from one character to another without losing the thread of the story."

Terranova recently directed "Good Words", a show starring Arturo Puig at the Teatro San Martín, and was co-author, along with Patricia Suárez, of "Babel Cocina". Fauth, for her part, has an extensive career in official, commercial, and independent theater circuits, in addition to having worked in film and television.

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