Renata Carvalho (born 1981) is a Brazilian actress, playwright and theater director.[1] She is from the city of Santos in São Paulo and began her career in the 1990s. She is trained in social sciences, and has dubbed herself a transpologist,[a] a combination of the terms transgender and anthropologist to describe her work on trans experiences and bodies.[2]

Early life and childhood

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Born in 1981, Carvalho was born in Santos, São Paulo.[3][4] Carvalho was forced out of her home and was involved in sex work and temporary work in a salon before formally taking up acting.[4] She is a travesti, and began her gender transition while working as a volunteer against sexually transmitted infections in 2007.[5]

Career

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In theatre, she has appeared in Body Your Autobiography,[4] Manifesto Transpofágico (2012),[6] Domínio Público,[7] The Gospel According to Jesus, Queen of Heaven (2016)[5][8] and Dentro de Mim Mora Outra (Inside Me Lives Another, 2013).[9] On television, she appeared on the HBO Max series Pico da Neblina.[3] In film, she appeared as Paula in Dry Wind (2020)[10] as well as the documentary Quem Tem Medo? (Who's Afraid?, 2020), which discusses censorship in the arts.[11] She played a trans artist in The First Fallen (2022), a film about those affected by the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s in Brazil,[12] as well as the short film Se Trans For Mar (2023).[13][14][15][16] She has also appeared in Um Inimigo do Povo (An Enemy of the People, 2023).[17]

Carvalho played Jesus Christ in the show The Gospel According to Jesus, Queen of Heaven, a translation by Natalia Mallo of the original play of Jo Clifford. Clifford later collaborated with Carvalho to premier the play in Brazil. Carvalho performed the title role over 200 times.[5][8] This brought Carvalho to wider recognition and caused controversy, including being banned in several cities in the country, such as Jundiaí, Salvador and Rio de Janeiro.[7][18]

Manifesto Transpofágico (based on a book of the same name that she wrote[1]) received positive reviews.[1][6][19][20]

For her work as an actress in the film The First Fallen, she received the Special Jury Award at the 52nd International Film Festival of India and the Special Jury Award (Troféu Redentor [pt]) at the 23rd Festival do Rio – Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival.[21] She was also nominanted for the Shell Theater Award for Best Actress [pt] for Um Inimigo do Povo (An Enemy of the People, 2023).[17]

Activism

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She is the founder of Monart (Movimento Nacional de Artistas Trans, National Movement of Trans Artists), a Brazilian national network for registering transgender artists to ensure greater representation in the arts.[22] In 2020, she received a grant of US$7,000 for Monart through Afield, an international support network for artists.[4]

References

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  1. ^ Portuguese: transpóloga
  1. ^ a b c Oliveira, Joana (May 13, 2022). "Renata Carvalho lança ao mundo seu Manifesto Transpofágico" [Renata Carvalho launches her Manifesto Transpofágico to the world]. Claudia (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  2. ^ Giusti, Iran (April 27, 2022). "Entenda de vez o que é transfobia recreativa" [Understand once and for all what recreational transphobia is]. Terra (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Atriz santista Renata Carvalho participa da pré-estreia do filme 'Primeiro Soldados'" [Santos actress Renata Carvalho participates in the premiere of the film 'Primeiro Soldados']. Prefeitura de Santos (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d "Atriz brasileira é selecionada para bolsa internacional por projeto sobre corpos trans" [Brazilian actress selected for international scholarship for project on trans bodies]. G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). March 15, 2021. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Awde, Nick (October 23, 2019). "Renata Carvalho: 'I've never known a play to raise discussions in so many places'". The Stage. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  6. ^ a b Meneses, Emerson Silva (November 23, 2021). "Artivismo de gênero e mediação sociocultural no manifesto transpofágico de Renata Carvalho" [Gender artivism and sociocultural mediation in Renata Carvalho's Manifesto Transpofágico]. Revista Extraprensa (in Portuguese). 14 (2): 281–298. doi:10.11606/extraprensa2021.171049. ISSN 2236-3467.
  7. ^ a b Rodrigues, Leonardo. "Quem é Renata Carvalho, a atriz transexual que ousou encarnar Jesus Cristo" [Who is Renata Carvalho, the transsexual actress who dared to embody Jesus Christ]. Brasil Online (in Brazilian Portuguese).
  8. ^ a b Sewell, Jan; Smout, Clare (2020-04-29). The Palgrave Handbook of the History of Women on Stage. Springer Nature. p. 797. ISBN 978-3-030-23828-5.
  9. ^ Henrique Fonseca, Pedro (April 15, 2013). ""Dentro de mim mora outra" em curta temporada na Vila do Teatro" ["Inside me lives another" in short season at Vila do Teatro]. Diário do Litoral (in Brazilian Portuguese).
  10. ^ Kiang, Jessica (4 March 2020). "'Dry Wind': Film Review". Variety.
  11. ^ Guevara, Lenin (October 3, 2020). "Combate à censura: a estreia do filme "Quem tem medo?" nos cinemas e um novo tempo que Virá" [Fighting censorship: the premiere of the film "Who's Afraid?" in theaters and a new era to come]. Mídia Ninja (in Brazilian Portuguese).
  12. ^ Tozze, Humberto (25 August 2022). "Renata Carvalho quer criar memória: 'Saberem que travestis fizeram cinema em 22'" [Renata Carvalho wants to create memories: 'To know that travestis made movies in 22']. Revista Marie Claire (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  13. ^ "'Se Trans For Mar', de Cibele Appes, apresenta narrativas positivas sobre corpos dissidentes na 26ª Mostra de Tiradentes" ['Se Trans For Mar', by Cibele Appes, presents positive narratives about dissident bodies at the 26th Tiradentes Exhibition]. Mídia Ninja (in Brazilian Portuguese). February 1, 2023.
  14. ^ "Curta-metragem 'Se trans for mar' estreia no Museu da Imagem e do Som de Santos, em São Paulo" [Short film 'Se trans for mar' premieres at the Museum of Image and Sound of Santos, in São Paulo]. Revista Afirmativa (in Brazilian Portuguese). March 24, 2022. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  15. ^ Yemba, Victor (31 May 2023). "Presença Festival chega a 2ª edição no Rio de Janeiro; confira a programação" [Presença Festival reaches its 2nd edition in Rio de Janeiro; check the schedule]. Super Rádio Tupi (in Brazilian Portuguese).
  16. ^ "Programe-se para curtir a agenda cultural em Santos" [Plan to enjoy the cultural agenda in Santos]. Prefeitura de Santos (in Brazilian Portuguese). March 8, 2023.
  17. ^ a b "Prêmio Shell de Teatro anuncia indicados de edição pós-pandemia; veja lista" [Shell Theater Award announces nominees for post-pandemic edition; see list]. Folha de S.Paulo (in Brazilian Portuguese). February 2, 2023. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  18. ^ Filho, Eduardo F. (September 22, 2017). "Renata Carvalho, atriz travesti: 'Mergulhei em Jesus'" [Renata Carvalho, travesti actress: 'I immersed myself in Jesus']. VEJA Gente (in Brazilian Portuguese). Grupo Abril. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  19. ^ Yemba, Victor (April 14, 2023). "Renata Carvalho estreia 'Manifesto Transpofágico' no Teatro Firjan Sesi Centro" [Renata Carvalho premieres 'Manifesto Transpofágico' at Teatro Firjan Sesi Centro]. Super Rádio Tupi (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  20. ^ Bonin, Robson (April 11, 2023). "Renata Carvalho estreia 'Manifesto transpofágico' no teatro Firjan" [Renata Carvalho debuts 'Manifesto Transpofágico' at Firjan theater]. VEJA Gente (in Brazilian Portuguese). Grupo Abril. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  21. ^ "Os Primeiros Soldados – Revista de Cinema". revistadecinema.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). July 7, 2022.
  22. ^ "Renata Carvalho". SpCultura (in Brazilian Portuguese). October 24, 2016. Retrieved January 2, 2024.