The French classic 8 Femmes becomes Brazil’s first musical theater adaptation, starring seven acclaimed actresses. Opens July 31 in São Paulo.
On Christmas Eve, a family gathering is shattered by a mysterious crime. Seven women are trapped inside an isolated mansion — each hiding her own secrets, each a potential suspect. That is the gripping premise behind 7 Mulheres e Um Mistério – O Musical (7 Women and a Mystery – The Musical), the first-ever Brazilian musical theater adaptation of the iconic French comedy thriller 8 Femmes, written by Robert Thomas.
The show opens on July 31 at the 033 Rooftop, perched atop the Teatro Santander in São Paulo, running through October 4, 2026. The production is part of the Teatro Santander’s 10th anniversary season.
A story that refuses to age
Robert Thomas first published Huit Femmes in 1958. The stage version debuted in 1961, directed by Jean Le Poulain, and won the prestigious Prix du Quai des Orfèvres for best original crime thriller text. In Brazil, a landmark 1962 production brought the story to life with an all-star cast including Nathalia Timberg, Suely Franco, and Dulcina de Moraes.
Director François Ozon reimagined the play as a musical film in 2002, winning both the César Award and the Silver Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival. The Italian film adaptation 7 Donne e Un Mistero (2021), directed by Alessandro Genovesi, became the most-watched non-English film on Netflix at the time of its release, logging 9.89 million hours viewed.
It’s a dramaturgy full of detail, sharp, precise, precious. Reading it today, we see it is more relevant than ever. It speaks about human relationships, about the power dynamics within family bonds. That is why it transcends time, like all great works.
Ricardo Grasson, director
An all-star cast and sharp direction
True to the work’s tradition of assembling celebrated performers, the Brazilian production stars Alessandra Maestrini, Bruna Guerin, Laura Castro, Letícia Soares, Malu Rodrigues, Stella Miranda, and Verónica Valentino. Artistic direction is shared by Ricardo Grasson and Heitor Garcia, with musical direction by Thiago Gimenes.
Director Heitor Garcia explains the production’s approach: “We will revisit the era in which the story was written, expand it, and observe how those questions resonate today. The work distances itself from the closed realism of crime fiction — and that distance is the comfortable ‘don’t take it too seriously’ that allows us, as directors, to deliberately push the self-irony and turn the story into farce.”
Original songs as storytelling engine
Anna Toledo wrote the translation, adaptation, and all original songs for the production. Her goal was to use music as a dramatic engine for each scene — and to deepen the female characters’ motivations far beyond the original text.
When adapting this plot into a musical comedy, I imagined everything would have to be exaggerated — the secrets need to be explosive and the emotions, volcanic. Music comes in to bring these feelings to the surface, turn everything upside down, and reveal what is hidden.
Anna Toledo, writer and composer
Toledo also notes that, in all previous versions of the story, the plot revolves around the death of a male patriarch. In the new Brazilian staging, female agency goes beyond casting women: the characters are now driven by their own desires, no longer defined by the need for male validation.
1950s setting, strikingly modern themes
Set in rural France in the 1950s, the show tackles themes that feel remarkably current: ageism, gender roles, class prejudice, and bisexuality. All are present in the original text and will be explored through the lens of farce and musical comedy.
The production is presented by Brazil’s Ministry of Culture via the Lei Rouanet federal incentive law, with sponsorship from Zurich Santander and support from Hyundai. General production is by Bruna Dornellas and Wesley Telles of WB Produções, realized by Nosso Cultural.
Event Info
- Show: 7 Mulheres e Um Mistério – O Musical (7 Women and a Mystery – The Musical)
- Season: July 31 to October 4, 2026
- Schedule: Fridays at 8 PM; Saturdays at 4 PM and 8 PM; Sundays at 3 PM and 7 PM
- Venue: 033 Rooftop – Av. Pres. Juscelino Kubitschek, 2041, Vila Nova Conceição, São Paulo – SP, Brazil
- Tickets: Premium Table: BRL 300 (full) / BRL 150 (half); Sofa Stalls: BRL 250 / BRL 125; Stalls: BRL 200 / BRL 100; Popular Stalls: BRL 50 / BRL 25
- Sales: https://bileto.sympla.com.br/event/118295 or at the Teatro Santander box office
- Running time: 120 minutes (including a 15-minute intermission)
- Age rating: 12 and over
- Capacity: 388 seats
- Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible; Braille program available; Brazilian Sign Language (Libras) interpreter at all Sunday 3 PM performances
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