Grupo de Dança Primeiro Ato brings “Like Water” to Rio’s Teatro Carlos Gomes — the show’s debut in the city, running March 26–29.
One of Brazil’s most decorated contemporary dance companies arrives in Rio de Janeiro with a poetic and sensory piece that uses water as a metaphor for time, transformation, and the human capacity to adapt. Founded in 1982 by choreographer and director Suely Machado, the Belo Horizonte-based group performs at the Teatro Municipal Carlos Gomes, in downtown Rio, from March 26 to 29 — Thursday and Friday at 7 PM, Saturday and Sunday at 5 PM.
Fluidity as artistic language
Just as water finds its way around obstacles without losing its nature, “Like Water” builds a non-linear narrative through states of suspension, withdrawal, advance, and redemption. The choreographic dramaturgy invites audiences to experience time not as a rigid measure, but as a sensory journey that unfolds through the body and memory.
Water always finds a way through. And that is the spirit of this work. Since its premiere, we have seen how audiences connect with the idea of dancing what resists, what escapes, and what transforms chaos into poetry.
Suely Machado, artistic director of Grupo de Dança Primeiro Ato
A collaborative creation
The choreographic concept was created by Marcela Rosa, a company member since 1988. The piece was developed through a collaborative process with performer-creators Alex Dias, Ana Carolina Vinhal, Marina Santana, Pedro Henrique Demétrio, and Tayná Barboza — a hallmark of the group’s creative approach, which places dancers at the center of dramaturgical creation.
On stage, bodies build sensitive landscapes defined by contrasts: containment and fluidity, silence and explosion, opacity and luminosity. The original score by composer Federico Puppi layers sound in direct dialogue with movement. Lighting design by Sarah Salgado Cordeiro dos Santos and costumes by Pablo Ramon round out the visual and atmospheric world of the piece.
Over four decades on stage
Since its founding in Belo Horizonte in 1982, Grupo de Dança Primeiro Ato has earned more than 50 national awards and performed across 23 Brazilian states and in countries including the United States, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Argentina, Uruguay, Bolivia, and Colombia. In 2013, the company received the Ordem do Mérito Cultural — Brazil’s highest cultural honor — from the Ministry of Culture.
This work was born from the desire to translate the present with depth and delicacy. Each new performance adds another layer to this living flow.
Suely Machado
Event Info
- Show: “Like Water” – Grupo de Dança Primeiro Ato
- Venue: Teatro Municipal Carlos Gomes
- Address: Praça Tiradentes, s/nº – Centro, Rio de Janeiro – RJ
- Dates: March 26–29, 2026
- Times: Thursday and Friday at 7 PM; Saturday and Sunday at 5 PM
- Tickets: R$ 80 (full price) and R$ 40 (half price)
- Running time: 50 minutes
- Rating: All ages
- Online tickets: https://bileto.sympla.com.br/event/117246
