The project Saudades of the Future was inspired by three poetesses of the past centuries, Karoline von Günderrode (1780-1806), Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) and Selma Meerbaum-Eisinger (1924-1942), three women whose work was not recognized during their lifetime. Saudades is an untranslatable Portuguese word that would mean something like missing, lack, nostalgia. “I miss you” becomes in Portuguese “I have saudades of you” and it is very common to end a private letter with this word. “Matar saudades” – literally “to kill some saudades” means to do again with someone everything we missed doing with this person, catching up again, hugging the loved one or going for a walk. It is a longing that fills you, as looking across the ocean.

Both Karoline von Günderrode and Emily Dickinson could not express or act freely for being women whereas Selma Meerbaum-Eisinger was a young Jewish girl as Hitler came to power. These three poetesses might have felt saudades of the future.

​

Gilu invited three young composers  - Helena Cánovas i Parés (1994, Spain), Ruben De Gheselle (1991, Belgium) and Martín Letelier (1987, Chile) - to set their poetry to music, each of them having chosen one poetess.

These new compositions brought stage director Hugo Portela Larisch (1991, Portugal) to put one question in the centre of the project. What does it feel like growing up as a woman?

A poetic project that reflects on the question of homage and our influence on the future of the society.