Cadence: a cordel literature treasure hunt - Location 3

In the northeast of Brazil, literatura de cordel is a longtime custom of entertainment that Coreto remembers fondly from their childhood. It translates to string literature, the same type of string used for clotheslines. Little booklets with stories written, often in verse, would be hung with clothespins around town, at a low price or free; it was a major way to tell and move stories through people. They are famous for their woodblock prints as covers and/or illustrations.

Gonçalo Ferreira, the president of the Brazilian Academy of Cordel Literature calls the art form, “a cultural manifestation that has become a genuine child of Brazilian artistic intelligence.”

It was popularized around the 18th century and known as popular poetry, for its simple and easy-to-understand writing making it easy for the simplest population to understand and appreciate. The authors of popular poetry were known as repentistas (improvisers), which are described with principles very closely to the medieval troubadours for telling stories with music and verse in the cities’ streets, making known the poems that came to be known as cordéis.

Coreto & Logan will collaborate on writing three short stories about Cadence, a shooting star who is on a journey through space and time. These stories will feature original poetry, song, and text. Each of these three short stories will consist of three chapters for a total of nine unique colour coordinated cordéis which can be collected across three stands in the city during Nocturne. This is done in such a way as to create a treasure hunt where each cordel will have a map to its subsequent chapters. No matter which stands a participant encounters first, they will be able to pick up the first chapter of one of the three stories.

Each of the three short stories will have a unique hand-carved linocut stamp on their cover reflecting the unique characters Cadence meets and lessons she learns as she blazes through the galaxy trying to better understand the nature of her light and how it touches others.

In addition to the illustrated cover and map to the next chapter, each cordel will feature a QR code which will allow participants to access a narrated track of the story accompanied by original music. This will allow audiences to engage more deeply with the material and experience while allowing an accessible option for those who may be blind or partially sighted.

Each of the three stations throughout the city will have an interpreter to share the project with passersby and ensure the interaction is welcoming and accessible to all.