To those who wondered why portray herself especially, Frida replied: “I paint myself because I spend a lot of
time alone and because I am the subject I know best” (from the magazine “Asì, Mexico” dated 17th March 1945)
The life and work of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo continue to exert a great artistic charm and a strong emotional impact. She lived just 47 years old, in Mexico, and her passion was being a communist declared.She took part in all peaceful struggles and turmoil in defense of many poor peole and oppressed.
Born July 6th 1907, Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderon was 15 years old fell in love with a student, Alejandro Gomez Aria. They were together the tragic day that Frida was found on a bus that collided with a train. The incident, which took a terrifying dynamics, caused several deaths and many injuries of which the most serious was Frida. For months, Frida remained in the hospital between life and death. The consequences of this accident tormented Frida for the rest of her life.
She suffered a dozen operations and despite its, Frida passionately loved life and knew how to find her way: Painting.
Frida devoted Herself to painting with passion and despite the physical and psychic pain of the aftermath of the accident continued to be a rebel, nonconformist and lively as she was before. .
At the end of the twenties Frida fells in love with the famous painter Diego Rivera.
They married in 1929. He was a tall, fat, impressive, going around with old pants, a faded shirt, a hat bought who knows when, but he was a temperament genial, cheerful, impulsive, famous for being a great conqueror of beautiful women and a passionate communist.
During her marriage to Diego Rivera, the painter was notoriously unfaithful in spite of the much loved wife and Frida also had some relationships with both men and women.
Frida: Wild and passionate as his native country, Mexico, violent and sweet as the attachment to life that characterized it, visionary and realistic as his own paintings and painting makes it the most versatile tool for expressing his desperate vitality .
The show conceived by Manfredi Gelmetti in collaboration with Karen Lugo starring as Frida, is a journey into troubled intimacy of the artist, in struggle with herself for survival, for the acceptance of a life marked by an incurable disease, from tormented love for Diego Rivera.
The dance becomes the star of the show, witness of Frida’s salvation, as told by the director through the fusion of words, music and dance.
Theaudience will accompany Frida through her cathartic journey, relive moments of her earthly life through the words of Diego, sitting at his desk and the memories will be shaped by the dance of Frida and the notes of the musicians.
By her own torment, Frida declares war on pain.
With this show, the director and the performers on stage, come alive with the audience, to declare in words, music and flamenco, their own “VIVA LA VIDA!”