José J. Podestá
José J. Podestá was a prominent figure in the Argentine cultural scene, known primarily for his extensive work in theater, particularly his role in staging *Juan Moreira*, a play adapted from Eduardo Gutiérrez's novel. Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1858 to circus performers of Italian descent, Podestá's early life was steeped in the performing arts, where he honed skills in acrobatics, music, and horse riding. He first portrayed the character of Juan Moreira in 1884, a role that would define his career and contribute significantly to the development of gaucho theater as a respected art form in Argentina.
Debuting as a full play in 1886, *Juan Moreira* tells the story of a popular hero victimized by political corruption, resonating deeply with audiences of the time. Podestá's dedication to the role spanned over fifty years, during which he continuously adapted and refined the production. His performances were notable not only for their artistic merit but also for featuring a large cast, often composed of his family members. The play became hugely successful, touring across Argentina and even Europe, solidifying Podestá's legacy in the theatrical landscape. He passed away in 1937 in La Plata, Argentina, leaving behind a significant impact on Latin American theater and culture.
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José J. Podestá
Writer
- Born: October 6, 1858
- Birthplace: Montevideo, Uruguay
- Died: March 5, 1937
- Place of death: La Plata, Argentina
Biography
José J. Podestá devoted more than fifty of his nearly eighty years to staging productions of Juan Moreira, a play adapted from a novel by Eduardo Gutiérrez. Podestá was the fourth of nine children born to Pedro Podestá and Maria Teresa Torterola, circus performers who came from Genoa, Italy, to South America in the 1840’s. They lived intermittently in Argentina and Uruguay, and Podestá was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1858. He attended school in Uruguay, but his crucial training came from his family and focused on acrobatics, trapeze performance, and music, skills to help him succeed in the circus. In 1875, he became an acrobat and trapeze artist with a French circus group. While touring in Argentina, Podestá, a white-faced clown called Pepino 88, met and married Baldomera Arias, part of an equestrian act.
In 1884, the Podestá family worked in the Carlo Brothers Circus, where, in July, 1884, Podestá was first called upon to play the role of Juan Moreira in a pantomime of Gutiérrez’s popular story. Juan Moreira was first published serially in La Patria Argentina between November 28, 1879 and January 8, 1880. It then appeared as a best-selling novel relating the tragic story of Juan Moreira, who lived in a provincial town in Argentina. The mayor, Don Francisco, has Moreira placed in the stocks and publicly humiliated because of a false accusation lodged against him by a corrupt merchant, Sardetti. Later, Moreira and Sardetti engage in a duel and Sardetti dies. Moreira, after bidding farewell to his family, is forced to flee. Moreira goes on to perform acts of bravery, but in the end, he is tracked down and the police kill him. The novel aims to depict the devastating effects of political corruption on a society. Moreira is the popular hero and outlaw to whom audiences predictably respond compassionately.
Podestá was selected to play the role of Moreira because he could sing, handle a gaucho knife, play the guitar, and ride a horse, all prerequisites for the part. After pantomiming his role for almost two years, Podestá produced a spoken adaptation of it. As the major actor in the play, he was responsible for its staging. Premiered in Chivilcoy, Argentina, on April 10, 1886, the play was a rousing success. Podestá, who is often credited with establishing the gaucho play as an art form in Argentina, spent the next fifty years tinkering with and updating this play and playing its lead character.
The cast, which at one time numbered eight-six actors, was composed largely of members of Podestá’s extended family. Juan Moreira met with remarkable success throughout Argentina and other Latin American countries. The first Argentinean play to tour Europe, it played to sold-out audiences wherever it was performed. In 1891, two years after Gutiérrez’s death, Podestá staged performances for the benefit of Gutiérrez’s family. Gutiérrez, who was thirty-eight when he died, had not benefitted substantially from the popularity of his staged story because of lax copyright laws. Podestá died in 1937, at the age of seventy-eight, in La Plata, Argentina.