Trata-se da dramatização de seu excelente romance “Nuns at Luncheon”, que tive o privilégio de ler. A parca iluminação do palco e o cenário minimalista refletem e refratam a atormentada consciência da protagonista, cuja síntese é expressa, logo de início, no poema de Alberto Caeiro, um dos heterônimos do poeta português Fernando Pessoa. A dupla atuação de Wilson Lória -- freira e ‘malandro’ -- espelha as contradições da visão-de-mundo expressa pela obra, numa performance digna de um virtuose. É sempre uma satisfação presenciar o progresso e a evolução de um artista tão versátil como Wilson Lória, camaleônico criador que, ao que tudo indica, ainda tem muito a oferecer. Parabéns.

- Performance de um virtuose. By Lilian Lopondo, Espaço dos Satyros II, São Paulo, 2010
 

It was an awesome play. It was one of those rare occasions that I walked out of a performance and had so many questions. My friends and I went to dinner afterwards and your play was the topic of our discussions. We were curious to find out if our interpretations were correct. There were a couple different ideas. It was quite interesting how similar yet how different we all interpreted your performance and the play itself. One of these days when you have time, I would love to hear how you created your character and to hear your thoughts. You brought some old friends together and opened up the table for a very fun discussion. 

- Bravo! by Risa Blane, The Catherine Hickman Theater, Gulfport (St. Pete), 2009

TO THE
WINNERS

Photo: Carlos Guerriero

A message whispered in a child’s ear becomes the basis for a life-long search. Wilson Loria’s touching and fantastical vision of youth and sex and family and longing takes us on a journey accompanied by the music of an accordion and the author/actor himself singing boleros. A one-man show not to be missed!

- Fantastical Vision by Johnathan Amacker, São Paulo, 2008

Thanks to "Out of Towner" showcase last night at Bryant-Lake Bowl. I can confidently make a few recommendations (some of these might  not be my thing, but they could well be yours!)... I'm looking forward to To the Winners at Theatre de la Jeune Lune (you know how I feel about accordions. Love. Them.). This show feels very romantic, very French, what with the café accordion music, mime and dance -- making Jeune Lune the perfect venue.

- Full Front Fringe blog by Kate Hoff, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

I made a point of attending the opening performance of To the Winners, based on what I saw at a preview, my brief interaction with writer/performer Wilson Loria, and a gut feeling. Plus, I love his promo photo. Told from the perspective of a child, Loria, who is Brazilian (just sit back and enjoy the few bits in Portuguese, an exquisite language), presents this piece with whimsy and imagination. It is gorgeous

- Full Front Fringe blog by Kate Hoff, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

I am speechless. Do not miss this show. Maybe my favorite of the year. Beautiful, tender, frantic... it kept me on the edge of my seat and wanting more.

- See This Show by Cobra Bentley, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

This is my favorite show of the Fringe so far, and I expect that it will remain so. The show is full of wonderful images, childlike wonder, and is simply lovely. I was thoroughly captivated by it. From the words to the movement to the accordion music, every moment is delicious.

- Lovely by Nancy R., Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

Wilson, thank you for reminding us of what we all loose grasp of time to time. Stop your consumption, stop your worrying, stop your fear and sit down to a beautiful show. Well thought out and specific. Your dance with your parents was worth the whole admission and then I got 45 min more.

- In Times Like These by Jennifer Phillips, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

 I see people writing "this show isn't for everyone," and I understand why, but I disagree. You just have to come with a different or even abandoned set of expectations about theatre, about story. I was expecting it would be more in the clowning vein (thinking of last year's I'm Sorry and I'm Sorry) given the photo, but it was actually focused on a kind of storytelling, albeit nonlinear, with lovely language and movement and some quite interesting props. (Excellent used of a shower curtain!) It's not really "sketches" (as one person put it) but a series of scenes, scenarios, remembrances, recountings, playfully slipping between the voice of a child and the voice of the adult who hasn't completely jettisoned that child. I wasn't always sure where the piece was going, which was to its advantage for me. Gorgeous and meditative. THIS was a surreal, dreamlike show.

- Gorgeous and Meditative by Fluffy Singler, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

 Not only is this the first time I've been moved to review a fringe production in about three years, "To the Winners" is only the second show in my Fringing history which I plan on attending twice (the other was "Pipes" in 2004). Mr. Loria is a splendid performer with string physical, vocal and emotional control. In his capable hands this intriguing, heartwarming and creative story is a must-see. Happy Fringing!

- A Rare Response by Anthony Paul, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

 I am a sucker for beautiful imagery, and this got me hardcore. Do NOT miss this if you can help it... and if you are around. See it twice. Minneapolis could used the help.

- Sooo Lovely by Amelia Friese, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

 Wilson is a joy to watch onstage - combining avant-garde artistry with pantomime, accordion playing, prose, and yes - comedy! I was hooked. This show won't be up everyone's alley, but if you're coming to see a straight-forward solo show, skip it. If you want to see ART and beautiful movement and if you want to hear a beautiful Brazilian voice and the tenderness of an accordion, do come out.

- Enthralling Poetry by Courtney McLean, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

Done with earnestness, but the center didn't hold. Sketches of the artists as a child growing up "different" in a macho culture interspersed with beautiful movement segments and lovely, lovely accordion playing. The movement and the music took me to another, more beautiful place. But there wasn't enough of that, and the sketches were not energetic enough to keep my interest.

- Music and Movement by B. Riley, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

Hard to follow, but so good-hearted it's even harder not to like it on some level. This will not be a show for everyone, but it's definitely unique.

- Wonderful Accordion, Lindsey D., Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

 “Attend, attend, attend”: Wilson Loria is a magnificent performer, precise and hilarious. The piece regularly turns on a dime, shifting from the moving to the parodic with expert control. Glimpses of the Brazilian social world of the 60’s can be seen often in and between the sentences of Loria’s childhood tale. I tend to find autobiographical solo shows narcissistic and boring, but Loria seems to be presenting this story because both its personal content (in particular, the way the world comes in through the TV) and its mode of performance (direct address, personable and inviting humor) are social. Also, one of the best lines I’ve heard in some time.

- Andrew Gricevich, Blog, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2006

A man wearing a tutu and face paint and playing an accordion demands attention. Consider the case of Gulfport actor Wilson Loria, whose solo show To the Winners is on the agenda this weekend at the Shimberg Playhouse at Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. Loria is a native of Brazil, where he was a member of a theater company that performed for the disenfranchised in and around São Paulo. He emigrated about 20 years ago to New York and has a master’s degree in performance studies from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. To the Winners uses music, dance and mime to tell a story of emotional and sexual awakening. It has been staged at fringe festivals in Minneapolis, Montreal and Orlando.

- John Fleming, Tampa Bay Times & St. Petersburg Times, 2006

If you are looking for alternative theatre with a capital "A", Wilson Loria's amalgam of mime, dance, Asian stage movement, transvestism, song and accordion music is it. Ostensibly it's about a search for life's message, but be warned: the text is very dense, the tone hypnotizing and the result is quite specific to each spectator and the mood they are in at the moment.

- The Gazette, Montreal Fringe Festival, 2005

In the evening’s most puzzling development, a show billed as “mime, dance, accordion,” Floridian Wilson Loria’s To the Winners won the Chapters/Blue Metropolis award for Best Text. The script― apparently there is one―will be given a reading at the Blue Met festival. Loria, who was a no-show at the awards ceremony, most likely because he was wrapping up the final performance of his show, also gets a $100 gift certificate to Chapters bookstore.

- Amy Barratt, Mirror newspaper, St-Ambroise Montreal Fringe Festival, 2005
 

Wilson Loria’s show, To the Winners, is the epitome of what longtime Fringe-goers recognize as Fringe -- eccentric, otherworldly, the kind of show that some people will run from and others will adore. Maybe it’s the whiteface. Maybe it’s the accordion and the tutu. Certainly it’s Loria’s hypnotic tale of childhood -- hypnotic in both the benign and not-so-benign sense of the word. Loria, a native Brazilian who has spent two decades in this country, spins a mystical tale of his childhood, a time in which he learned his lessons by pretending to be a TV anchorman delivering the geography news, learned to play the accordion and developed a fixation with the sea god Neptune. His face painted white, Loria speaks but uses the expressive movements of mime: his donning of the tutu seems just one more piece of a performer’s repertoire on the fringe. All of this way too odd, or maybe too metaphorical, for many of us, and it doesn’t help that To the Winners, which last 50 minutes, feels too long. Still, there’s that mystical accordion, and the ritualistic movement, and the sound of soft Brazilian songs. A little of that, and I’m there.

- Elizabeth Maupin, Orlando Sentinel, Orlando Fringe Festival, 2005

Childhood certainly has its charms, both in the living and in the remembering. Looking back, we see a distorted sense of time and scale, with things and events and emotions flowing and interweaving to produce a dream like reminiscence. The slight Wilson Loria flows about the stage, recalling this state of being, revealing his childhood feelings for Neptune and the mermaids. This childhood was typical, with signs of love at a distance and a growing understanding of the adult world. This stream of conscience story is half spoken, half sung, and half dances, leading the child of Loria to the accordion. This complex yet despised instrument is capable of emitting the lost sounds of far, far away, just like childhood itself. One leaves the space feeling confused and yet reassured -- childhood IS alive here and lovingly captured by the white face and stocking cap of a clown half prepared to perform. He is a mirror of his beginnings, when he is still only half ready to live in the harshness of the real world.

- Carl F. Gauze, Ink 19, Orlando Fringe Festival, 2005

Photo: Jenn Miller
 

 OENS

NY's Frigid Festival's "Oens" by Wilson Loria was a big performance in a small space. It explored themes of big ideas, such as the relationship between European colonial history and current cultural imperialism/globalization, and the idea of thinking of our leaders as gods. It was also big in artistry, demonstrating proficiency in multiple genres-acting, writing, song, mime, and dance. "Oens" is intimate in scale and expansive in ideas.

Personally, what most astonished me about the show was Wilson's physicality, his ability to express ideas through his body. His skill blurred boundaries between acting, dance and mime. His physicality demonstrated a talent that bespeaks a tremendous degree of physical awareness and discipline. I am hoping that Wilson's next show has even more of this aspect of his performance

- Expansive in ideas by Celeste Kolin, NY Frigid Festival, 2009

 I’ve known Wilson for almost 20 years and yet he can still surprise me! I have seen his monologue “Oens” twice in a short span of three months (in Portuguese, during his tour in Sao Paulo, Brazil; and again, in English, in New York). His play in both languages shares the same anti-imperialism aesthetics and energy in spite of cultural differences, and they are both masterly (yet elusively) performed. I am amazed by how well Wilson is capable of conveying a political and psychoanalytical message (speaking in a global terms) and providing the audience with the chance to explore their own inner “psyche” in a solo play. I left both shows contemplating his ability to write an intriguing script that tells us a great deal of his world views and his profound and anguished desire to transform it. A long overdue transformation indeed! Written by Wilson, it had to be performed by himself. If not by this talented soloist, I am afraid the result would have unavoidably been closer to obscurity. Most importantly, however, is how creatively he fins his way to communicate something in which he believes so deeply. What exactly? I won’t say it here because I am sure Wilson wants you and deserves your presence at his next presentations. “Oens” must first be seen, then, we can all discuss a bit more about globalization and how we fit in or we don’t.

- An overdue transformation by Sergio Cesario, NY Frigid Festival, 2009

 Wilson is wonderful in OENS. I saw it in Minneapolis and I later saw it in NYC. Each time it gets better and better. Extraordinary.

- Better and better by Charles Bjorklund, NY Frigid Festival, 2009

 Seeing Wilson Loria’s performance of “Oens” was fantastic! The text was rich in a mix of philosophical, historical and socio-political-cultural aspects. It was serious, yet funny. Wilson’s voice is a pleasure to be heard and his acting really drives the audience through the story that he is telling. There are moments that are simply wonderful, for example, when he tells the story of “Dona Inês and Dom Pedro”. At the end of the show, he makes a very interesting suggestion for the audience to reflect upon the India that is inside oneself. I look forward to seeing Wilson perform again.

- Serious, yet funny by Alexandrino DuCarmo, NY Frigid Festival, 2009

Wilson Loria snatches globalization – both ancient and modern – by the neck and squeezes unmercifully. Any theater piece combining Portuguese adventurers, a tragic Spanish love story, and Condoleeza Rice as the goddess Athena is on to something. And though Oens has its moments of hilarity, you’ll never again be able to count “one…two…” without an ache in your heart.

- Globalization by Johnathan Amacker, São Paulo, 2008

A imprecação do Velho do Restelo, em Os Lusíadas, poderia fazer parte do solo teatral ÕES, de WILSON LORIA, cuja última apresentação no Brasil acontecerá no próximo sábado, dia 01 de novembro. Mais surpreendente, no entanto, é escolher o episódio de Inês de Castro, que inunda de lirismo um dos melhores momentos do espetáculo.

Ao entrar no navio apresentado no início da viagem, ainda não sabemos: a trajetória de Vasco da Gama será reconstruída. De repente, especiarias e granadas.

A voz de George H. W. Bush ecoa no começo, sinalizando, talvez, o caráter profano desta história. Futuramente, num golpe de humor incisivo, seremos informados da participação dos atuais representantes do Olimpo, certos líderes estadunidenses, nas artimanhas do destino desta epopéia contemporânea.

Sem dúvida, é central neste trabalho a reflexão sobre o processo político desencadeado no período das Grandes Navegações. Por outro lado, existe um tratamento poético: (algumas vezes, sutil; recorrentemente, ostensivo) que amplia o significado de Ões. Por exemplo, na belíssima exposição da morte: partimos da tragédia de Inês de Castro e chegamos, finalmente, à alegoria da morte.

O melhor de tudo? A performance de Wilson Loria: sua atuação valoriza os momentos mais importantes e/ou envolventes e é fundamental nos menores.

Infelizmente, perdi Aos Vencedores, cartão de visitas do nosso artista radicado na terra dos ianques. Quem estiver em São Paulo no próximo fim de semana não deve perder a última chance de conhecer esse moço talentoso. Depois, Inês é morta.

- Sonho, Sede de Conquista ou "Glória de Mandar" e "Vã Cobiça"? de Maiara Gouveia,
São Paulo, 2008

Oens breaks out of the common fringe modes of spoof and confessionalism to take the audience to some unique places of discovery outside of their usual worlds. I do understand some of the other reviews and how the piece might have felt disjointed or unclear. Sometimes with nonlinear work you have to go along for the ride without trying to link it all too quickly. The poetic language in many places in the piece was stunning and the story of Ines in the middle of the piece was amazing and moving. I would recommend putting that story sooner in the piece and using it perhaps to anchor the other segments somehow. The costuming was great and the set and props simple and inventive at the same time. The piece has a few bugs to work out yet, but even so, is well worth the time spent to experience what Fringe is REALLY about--thoughtful work that takes risks! Go! Go! Go! to this show on Saturday!

- Daring and Ambitious by Fluffy Singler, Minnesota Fringe Festival website, 2008

A voyage from Portugal to India by Vasco de Gama is used to make a point about globalization. Wilson Loria schmoozes with the audience, sings a song in Spanish, slings some heavy-handed commentary about the Bush administration before settling down into a very affecting story about Ines de Castro. Three and a half kitties rounded down for taking so long to get to the good parts. Wilson's excerpt in the Ootie Fest was good, so I had flagged this. It wasn't quite what I expected from the bit, which is fine. The Interact is a small, intimate, venue and he worked the crowd well.

- Ines est Morte by Baron Dave, Live Journal, Minneapolis, 2008

So guy comes out in a weird costume, weird music starts playing, and he moves through the space in a weird way. I can’t say that I have any real idea exactly what was going in the little movement sequence I witnessed, and I seemed to have every reason to hate it — but I loved it. I found it funny and engaging and consistently interesting throughout. Moreover, he demonstrated a physical discipline and control that suggests to me that he’s more than capable of sustaining an hour show: the brief piece I saw was the work of an artist I’m prepared to trust.

- Out-of-Towners showcase by Phillip Andrew Bennett Low,
Daily Planet blog, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2008

Mr. Loria's performance is precise and articulate, movement and words. The story is revealed through his unique brand of choice of imagery and his big presence... he shows us see what we must.

- Seeing What We Must by Yolanda Cotterall,
Minnesota Fringe Festival website, 2008

Oens presented by Wilson Loria at Interact Center. Wilson, originally from Brazil, currently of Florida, brought his show To the Winners to the Minnesota Fringe in 2006, and it ranks among my favorite Fringe shows, ever. Wilson is an amazing creature, with an otherworldliness that allows him to be extremely successful staging a concept that could be a train wreck in the wrong hands. This show won’t be for everyone. I refused to take my then-boyfriend, now husband Bob to Wilson’s show in 2006, for fear that Bob wouldn’t like it and then I’d have to break up with him.

- Kate's Top Ten for 2008! by Kate Hoff, Daily Planet blog, Minnesota Fringe Festival, 2008

Oens is a fantastic experience. A great journey through one man's eyes...colorful, intimate, high energy and intellectually stimulating. Wilson brings the poignant issues of current American society to life...with his particular penchant, energy and joie de vivre. This is a show that needs to be attended at least a couple of times. Once to see...twice to hear...

- Nadine Pinto, Capital Fringe Website, 2008

 What's it all about? There is plenty of Fringe fun yet to be had in this city over the weekend, so it's hard to recommend just one show out of the carnival of zaniness that has taken over our stodgy town. But we are fond of "Oens" at the Warehouse through July 20. Using music, mime and dance, "Oens" is about globalization and man's eternal search for a better world.

- Weekend Pass (The Scene), The Washington Post/Express, Capital Fringe, 2008

I was pleased with how Wilson got his message across to the audience with his performance piece. He used song, dance, movement, and words to paint the picture for us. He also did a lot of research for the show, which is explained at the end when he provides statistics for us to think about. In all, I’d recommend this show, and wish Wilson the best of luck at Fringe!

- Message to the audience by Gabi Lorino, Blogging Fringe, Orlando Fringe Festival, 2006

Wilson is completely adorable! He’s everywhere at the Fringe, and if (somehow) you haven’t talked to him yet, you should. I love that he exists, and is here, trying to bring something different and important to the Fringe. He believes so STRONGLY in what he does and his show’s message. Like he was telling me, shows full of naked people are great and all, but we are at war right now. People need to start thinking more about these issues….And on top of all of that, he’s the biggest sweetheart! You just want to pick him up and smuggle him out of the Shakespeare Festival in your pocket… Well, at least I do.

- Biggest sweetheart by Paige, Blogging Fringe, Orlando Fringe Festival, 2006

 “Oens” is without a doubt the most pure performance art piece of this year’s Orlando Fringe. It’s also the Festival title most deserving of “Fringe Theatre” status. Good thing Wilson is here, I just wish more people would give him a chance. The main problem (i.e. reason they won’t) can be attributed to the quote, “People can’t handle too much reality.”

- Fringe Theatre status by Brian Feldman, Blogging Fringe, Orlando Fringe Festival, 2006

OENS is the type of show that can be considered eye-opening (i.e. it has an agenda). The interesting thing about eye-openers is this: even if your eyes are already open, a show like OENS will only serve to affirm that your eyes should remain open. Brazilian Wilson Loria uses recorded music, live vocal music, dance, pantomime, maps and outrageous costumes to compare sailing on a galleon to collect spices from India and slaves from Africa to today’s import of jobs, modern life and McDonald’s to developing nations.

Wilson began the show by greeting each person in the audience, calling some of them by name, remembering who has been to his show before, who said they were coming and where they were from. He lets the audience know that they are there participating in the narrative, because they are citizens of the same Earth. Music and sound bytes from old radio broadcasts recount nearly every global war or conflict since the birth of recorded music, all the way up to George H. Bush’s reign.

A romanticized ocean voyage to exotic India follows, with a stop near Madagascar to interact with aborigines, and an all-too modern council of war with the likes of Athena, Hermes and Dionysus replacing General, Secretary of Defense and other positions. The piece slowly transitions into posing questions as to what globalization of corporations and capitalism are doing to the world. The motto “We should be concerned with Being, not Possessing” provides a capstone for the messages presented in the program.

As for the show itself, audience members will likely be lost as to the meaning of the songs (sung in Portuguese) and the purpose of the mime within the story structure. Some parts of the show are not as tightly scripted as others, and it shows. The real payoff comes at the end, where Wilson read from a printout, not my favorite means of delivery, but he did use the pages as a prop, so I cannot slight him on that.

Wilson will be delighted if you stop by and see his show. If you see him in the halls at Fringe, you should at least thank him for making the trip to America to share his talents with us. Fringe 2006 would not be complete without OENS; at least that’s my opinion.

- We Want Profit! Slaves! by Ryan Price, Blogging Fringe,  Orlando Fringe Festival, 2006

The enigmatic Wilson Loria returns to the Orlando stage with a beautifully mysterious rumination on modernization and change. Entering the room under a huge white umbrella, he greets all the audience members individually as audio clips of wars and disasters crackle from the sound booth. We begin with the mechanics of sailing around the Horn of Africa in search of the riches of India, as developed by the Portuguese. Only the amazing nautical innovations the Portuguese brought to sailing would allow this small impoverished country to dominate and exploit a wealthy land half a world away. They did as good a job as anyone since, and spread Western ideas and disease as they went.

Further along, we hear a beautiful and untranslated Brazilian song, as enigmatic as an unopened letter. But the Portuguese are not evil, no more so than any other culture based on profit, and the tragic romance of Don Pedro and Inez highlights the humanity of the exploiters. Finally, we sit through a rather odd news conference hosted by Mr. Loria, explaining the administrative details of exploitation, including a plan to make the aboriginals sign paper after paper after paper... That’s my favorite strategy for deflecting evilness - bury it in paper work. “Oens” is the most thought provoking show on the program, and it deserves some reflection before you head to the beer tent.

- Carl F. Gauze, Ink19, Orlando Fringe Festival, 2006.

In his latest avant-garde performance piece, Wilson Loria says he plays “a disquieting ordinary man,” and that’s as good as any description we’ve heard of his Marcel Marceau-cum-Barbara Eden schtick -- except maybe for the “ordinary” part. Last year’s To the Winners had Loria coming on like the world’s chattiest mime, using white-face and silky genie pants to help sell his surreal but soul-bearing monologues. His new show, he says, traces human evolution from discovery to globalization. We’re betting it’ll be unlike anything else you’ll see at the Fringe.

- Steve Schneider, Orlando Weekly, Orlando Fringe Festival, 2006.