Director Roberto Merino honored at MIT Valongo 2026

The Círculo MIT, International Theatre Showcase, returns for its 27th edition from October 14 to 21, centered on the theme of memory, and pays tribute to theatre director and educator Roberto Merino.

Produced by the company Cabeças no Ar e Pés na Terra, this edition’s programme runs from October 14 to 21 and features 6 shows, 1 tribute, and 2 workshops (for children and youth), bringing artists from Brazil, Chile, Spain, France, Portugal, and the United Kingdom to the stage.

On October 15, the showcase pays tribute to Roberto Merino as a moment of recognition, celebration, and preservation of the legacy of a creator whose artistic career deeply marked the cultural and theatrical landscape.

Roberto Merino (b. 1952, Concepción, Chile) is a renowned theatre director, playwright, and educator based in Portugal since the 1970s. With a career closely connected to the cultural life of Porto and the north of the country, he has directed over a hundred productions, served as artistic director of Teatro Experimental do Porto (TEP), and collaborated with companies such as Seiva Trupe and Teatro Art’Imagem. He also played a key role in theatre education as co-founder, director, and lecturer of the Higher Degree in Theatre at ESAP—one of the first higher education theatre programs in Portugal—and as a lecturer for around three decades at Balleteatro Professional School.