The journey took place between April 26 and 30, in 6 municipalities of the Contestado Region.
On Monday (24), the launch livestream was broadcast on the event’s channels, on Facebook and on YouTube, with the participation of professor Paulo Pinheiro Machado (UFSC), Jilson Carlos Souza, Lu Paes, Jorge Luiz Gonçalves, Gustavo Zardo, Juciara Machuga, as well as professor Dandy dos Santos and Roberto Schnemberger.
The event brought the show Natureza Cabocla – performed by Lu Paes and Jorge Luiz Gonçalves, directed and produced by Gustavo Zardo — to the municipalities of Tangará, Luzerna, Videira, Fraiburgo, Monte Carlo and São Bento do Sul. Over these 5 days, 1,600 people were able to learn a little more about the conflict that took place between 1912 and 1916 and the legacy it left behind.
The educator and communicator Jilson Carlos Souza, organizer of the event, stresses that the Journey has been becoming an important space for the appreciation and reframing of the caboclo civilization and culture of the Contestado.
- The Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey was built to spread the legacy left by Francisca Roberta, Chica Pelega, heroine of Taquarussu do Bonsucesso, and the Caboclo Resistance that faced the Army of arrogance (the military police of Santa Catarina and Paraná, plus the hired gunmen of the Coronels and of Lamber…).”
After the show, everywhere it went there was a Roda de Prosa (talking circle), where people took part commenting on and debating issues with the actors and organizers about what was presented, as well as details of caboclo culture. Among the themes discussed in the talking circles, a highlight was the creation of the Federal University of the Contestado (UNIFECON). Jilson explains:
“Debated for years by social and grassroots organizations of the Contestado Region, this proposal was very well received in all the places where it was presented. The assessment of those who followed the Natureza Cabocla performances is that the building of UNIFECON is one of the ways to pay the historical debt that the state and Brazilian economic elites owe to the Contestado Region.”
Another novelty worth highlighting in this edition: the creation of the new visual identity, designed by professor/artist Gerson Witte, as well as the making of an official event T-shirt.
Abertura em Tangará
On Wednesday morning (26), the play was performed at the Clube Rio Bonitense, watched by more than 200 high school students and teachers, exceeding all the organizers’ expectations.
Once the performance ended, the folk artists Jorge Luiz Gonçalves, Lu Paes and Gustavo Zardo were welcomed by directors Gilson Panceri Junior and Roberto Bohnenberger, at the Administrative Center of Cresol Meio Oeste — a supporter of the event.
Luzerna, onde nasceu Chica Pelega
On the afternoon of the 26th, the show was performed at E.E.B Padre Nóbrega, in Luzerna, an iconic place. At the time of the conflict, the region covering the municipalities of Ibicaré, Luzerna, Joaçaba, Herval d’Oeste, Herval Velho and Catanduvas formed the great district of Limeira. It was in this place that Francisca Roberta was born, Chica Pelega, heroine of Taquarussu do Bonsucesso.
Approximately 200 students from the 9th grade and 1st and 2nd year of high school classes, as well as the teachers, watched the performance.
“The show Natureza Cabocla was without a doubt a moment of political and activist reflection, a history lesson, by professionals committed to the essence of our Culture. The students and teachers were simply enchanted by such beauty and subtlety in the details of the show, by the real-life stories they did not even know. They saw themselves as subjects belonging to the Contestado territory, which brought meaning to their existence and an understanding of what they are through their ancestry, unfortunately still denied and camouflaged,” reports professor Darlene.
Darling, as the teacher is known, recalls that professor Janete told, in tears, during the performance of the show, that her grandmother was a folk healer (benzedeira).
Em Videira, três sessões
On Thursday morning (27), the show Natureza Cabocla was performed at E.E.B Esther Crema Marmentini, in Videira, in the Vale das Perdizes. The first session was for the students and teachers of E.E.B Anísio Rachadel de Oliveira (Anta Gorda – Videira) and E.E.B. Frei Evaristo (Iomerê); the second had students and teachers of the host school. In the afternoon, more than 350 people packed the Auditorium of IFC Videira to enjoy the show. The academic community and guests were able to share knowledge about the conflict.
Em Fraiburgo: mais três sessões
On Friday (28), the 2nd Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey arrived in Fraiburgo. The Auditorium of the Instituto Federal Catarinense (IFC) was the stage for two performances of Natureza Cabocla. In the first session, 175 students and teachers of the Institute attended the event. The second performance was for 175 students and teachers of the Padre Biaggio Simonetti Municipal School and of the Fraiburgo Educational Center (CEFRAI).
“A wonderful show brought by the Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey; congratulations Lu Paes and Jorge Gonçalves for the performance, Gustavo for the direction, IFC Fraiburgo for the venue and Jilson for the bridge between art and school. It would be even more amazing if the City Hall and City Council of Fraiburgo brought this marvel to all the schools and people of the municipality,” commented professor Karoline Fin on her social media.
The night was marked by symbolism and emotion; the third performance was in Taquarussu do Bonsucesso, precisely at the Recanto Caboclo of the Renascença Cabocla Group. In addition to the group’s members, the session had the presence of the Quilombolas of the Campo dos Poli Community, and residents of the Contestado Settlement and of the Taquarussu community. The place is symbolic, because it was there that two great battles took place — massacres, in fact, of the caboclo people. Among the dead was Chica Pelega.
Sábado em Monte Castelo
On Saturday (29), at the Ivo Moreira Events Center, in Monte Castelo, the ninth performance of the play took place, within the programme of the 2nd Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey. This time, the organization was handled by the administration, students and teachers of E.E.B Valentin Gonçalves Ribeiro.
Before the performance, the delegation visited the square next to the railway line where the monument to São João Maria rests. After the show, professor Erick Alves, who coordinated the work, welcomed the organization and the show’s team for a delicious dinner around the wood-burning stove.
Encerramento em São Bento do Sul
The closing of the Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey was marked by emotion. On Sunday (30), the 2nd Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey arrived at the Alto da Glória Occupation, in São Bento do Sul, where they were welcomed with great joy and a delicious lunch, shared with members of the Community and local social organizations. In the afternoon, the tenth performance of the show Natureza Cabocla took place. At the end, emotion took over the audience, the actors and the whole collective.
“The last performance in Alto da Glória was moving. For the context of struggle, for the welcome we received, for the drizzle, for the wonderful sun that appeared, for the deep debate and especially for the accounts and tears of the audience present,” commented Jorge Luiz Gonçalves, a member of the theatrical work Natureza Cabocla.
To conclude, Jilson, the event’s organizer, points out that it was a great challenge to organize the 2023 edition of the Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey, since the previous year’s edition was held online and this year’s was carried out in six different municipalities: “Taking a theatrical show like Natureza Cabocla to schools, Federal Institutes, Community Spaces and Occupations was gratifying and at the same time completely challenging, because the theatrical work was presented in various places, from well-structured auditoriums to open-air spaces; without the great versatility of the actors and the local producers, we certainly would not have achieved the success obtained.” Jilson adds that the Journey was built to spread the legacy left by Francisca Roberta, Chica Pelega, heroine of Taquarussu do Bonsucesso, and the Caboclo Resistance that faced the Army of arrogance (the military police of Santa Catarina and Paraná, plus the hired gunmen of the Coronels and of Lamber…). “Without a doubt, the Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey has been becoming an important space for the appreciation and reframing of the Caboclo Civilization and Culture of the Contestado,” he comments.
“For 2024 the challenges increase. Jilson says that a meeting will soon be held to assess the positive and negative points of this year’s edition and to start thinking about the 3rd edition of the Chica Pelega Caboclo Journey, to be carried out next year,” comments Jilson Carlos Souza – popular educator and communicator, a member of the Journey’s coordination.
Números da Jornada Cabocla Chica Pelega 2023
■1,600 spectators;
■ 09 Schools benefited;
■ 19 Posts on the Facebook page;
■ 03 Social organizations benefited;
■ 10 Performances held;
■ 1,174 Kilometers traveled;
■ 06 Municipalities;
■ 250 Views on the YouTube live stream;
■ 04 Organizing entities;
■ 18 Institutional partners or sponsors;
