ColecViva and its Collaborative Methods Viewed as an Educational Project

The ColecViva was a group founded in 1985 by the composer Constança Capdeville (1937–1992) with the purpose of performing her own music theatre works. She composed, led, and acted as a performer in her own creations. Capdeville’s music theatre incorporates various artistic expressions such as dance, theatre, and cinema, resorting to different elements such as music, recorded sounds on tape, light, image, text, and movement, all structured as heterogeneous counterpoints. ColecViva’s activity also included seminars with discussions on aspects of performance and the group members shared their experiences with participants as an educational project. Although its activity has now ceased, ColecViva remains the only music theatre group to have existed in Portugal, with a lasting impact on those who were part of the group. It was also unique in the context of contemporary Portuguese music, as it sought to interpret a less widespread repertoire within a classical production style, revealing a connection with avant-garde aesthetics. This article aims to discuss ColecViva’s collaborative methods through an exploration of its educational activities, which influenced successive generations of performers who are now significant composers, performers (musicians, dancers, and actors), choreographers, directors, and musicologists.