Porto Book Fair promotes dozens of activities starting Friday
© Lusa
Sérgio Godinho, "one of the most important Portuguese authors of today", will be highlighted at the Porto Book Fair 2025, in a tribute that extends to his fictional and poetic work, rivaling "in quality with his songbook", says the president of the Porto City Council, Rui Moreira, in a note published on the fair's website, where the entire program is available.
"The creative universe of this man of seven instruments serves as the theme for the fair's programming, which spans different artistic expressions: from literature to music, including visual arts, cinema and spoken word," adds the mayor.
For 17 days, the Crystal Palace Gardens will host 113 publishers, booksellers and second-hand booksellers spread across 130 pavilions, and will host initiatives such as mural interventions, concerts, games, book presentations, cinema, talks, exhibitions and workshops for children and young people, according to the available programming.
On the very first day, there will be a mural intervention by illustrator Mariana, a miserável, entitled "A Minhoca", inspired by the song "Lá Isso É" (1978), by Sérgio Godinho.
The opening concert, "And the heart tells it/how many times it has beaten for nothing", which takes place at the Concha Acústica, is curated by Tiago Andrade and Bruno Rocha, and will take place at the end of the day.
In the evening, as part of the cinema program, the auditorium of the Almeida Garrett Municipal Library presents "Estilhaços", based on a show by Adolfo Luxúria Canibal.
On the 23rd, the highlights will be the awarding of the lime tree in honor of Sérgio Godinho, at 3:00 pm, followed by the tribute session "Sérgio sobre o Porto", with the participation of the musician, Rui Moreira, João Gobern and Francisco José Viegas.
Regarding the cinema program, throughout the several days of the fair, there are scheduled screenings of films such as "Once Upon a Time in the Apocalypse", by Tiago Pimentel, with Sérgio Godinho, "Kilas the Bad Guy", followed by a conversation with the musician, "Nós por cá todos bem", by Fernando Lopes, "Jules e Jim", by François Truffaut, or the multimedia lecture "O labyrinth of beauty", by Martim Sousa Tavares, among others.
Concerts are one of the highlights of the event, which this year will feature musical performances by artists such as Manel Cruz, Márcia, Três Tristes Tigres, Lula Pena, Napa and, to close the fair, a concert by Sérgio Godinho & Os Assessores, with Manuela Azevedo as guest.
Still in the musical context, it will be possible to watch the podcasts "Assim ou Assado", with Marco Neves and Sam The Kid, and "O que creado ouvir", with Ivan Lima and Sérgio Godinho.
There will also be space for several thematic conversations, including "How many hidden faces on the visible side of the moon?", with Luísa Sobral and moderated by Maria João Costa, "Counterfeiting freedom is ignominy", with António Brito Guterres and moderated by Teresa Coutinho, or "Everything in love makes everything out of nothing", with Lídia Jorge and moderated by Rui Couceiro.
The program also includes an initiative by the cultural cooperative Frenesim, which consists of an 'open call' for all the voices of Porto to join together in a collective creation choir, for a show that will take place on the 6th and 7th of September, entitled "Maré Alta -- Coro instante do Porto".
"We have created, within the scope of the Porto Book Fair, a captivating literary festival, based on a rich, vibrant and diverse program, counting on the complicity and precise gesture of hundreds of 'alchemists of the word'", highlights the program coordinator, João Gesta.
In the words of the person in charge, "freedom will pass through" the Porto book fair, which he hopes "will become a rigorous exercise in liberation, a celebration of words at the service of the clear and dizzying day, a celebration where the whole world can fit in."
Writer and editor Francisco José Viegas, commissioner of the tribute to Sérgio Godinho, said that from the 23rd, on Avenida das Tílias, one of these trees will be named after Sérgio Godinho and his verses, and highlighted the launch of his new book of short stories, "Como se não haver amanhã" (As if there were no tomorrow), as well as the closing concert, which takes place a week after the singer turned 80.
Read Also: Jardim das Artes e Letras opens in Viseu with books, music and cinema
noticias ao minuto
