The Memory Job / The Police Training Opera

By Wetzel

Two Contributions to “Apartamentos Equis” (“X Apartments”) in Caracas.

The Memory Job:
An audio tour narrated by Rafael Castillo, the former official chronicler of the Chacao neighborhood. The tour moves from a shopping mall to his office in the police building, where he sits on a bench, poses a trick question, and if the answer is "Yes," he hands over the job.

The Police Training Opera:
Three former opera singers explain that the emotions they sing are not the ones they can actually feel while performing. Because the opera house is used for Hugo Chavez's large events and no longer receives funding for opera, they sing the day’s newspaper texts to Italian arias and duets. Young police officers from Chacao's district police accompany this with combat training, demonstrating that even under extreme pain and stress, they must show no emotions and neutralize their opponents with objectively effective counterattacks.

By: Daniel Wetzel, Psimenou
With: Rafael Castillo (Chronicler), Julio Dante (Tenor), 20 police officers from Policia Chacao, and female singers. Support: Pigi Psimenou
Production: Apartamentos Equis, Ateneo Festival Caracas, Goethe Institute Venezuela
Premiere: April 12, 2006