A Brazilian Theater Premiere in NYC: The Passion According to Janair - Clarice Lispector Through Her Silenced Character

A bold debut gives center stage to a presence long confined to the margins

NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, July 31, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- This fall, New York audiences will experience a powerful reframing of a literary classic as Group Dot BR, the city’s only Brazilian theater company, presents the Off-Off-Broadway premiere of The Passion According to Janair. This one-woman production revisits Clarice Lispector’s landmark 1964 novel The Passion According to G.H.—not from the viewpoint of its affluent protagonist, but through the perspective of her Black maid, Janair, a character whose presence is central yet seldom explored.

While the novel unfolds almost entirely within Janair’s room and reflects on her actions, readers never see the world through her eyes. However, this daring theatrical work shifts the focus, placing Janair’s perspective at the center and offering an empowered reflection on race, class, gender, and narrative authority.

The Passion According to Janair explores intersectionality at its core—the overlapping experiences of being Black, female, poor, and a domestic worker. It raises urgent questions about who is seen, who is heard, and how power operates across layered systems of privilege. The play also resonates deeply with the lived realities of immigrant women across the globe, many of whom navigate precarious working and living conditions in pursuit of dignity, visibility, and survival.

This bold theatrical interpretation transforms Lispector’s inward-looking narrative into a mirror reflecting contemporary struggles around representation, domestic labor, and systemic inequality, while honoring the complexity of a woman who has always been present, just never heard.

Starring by acclaimed Brazilian actress Ana Carbatti, and directed by Andressa Furletti, a leading figure in New York’s Latinx and immigrant arts communities, this intimate production will premiere on November 5th, and run through November 23rd, 2025, at HERE Arts Center in Soho.

“This premiere draws inspiration from works like Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, turning Lispector’s introspective lens outward, toward those whose lives and labor have long been rendered invisible by systems of privilege and silence”, says director Andressa Furletti.

Tickets will be available starting August 1, 2025, at www.group.br.com/janair. Early booking is strongly encouraged for this limited Off-Off-Broadway engagement.
This project is made possible in part with funds from Creative Engagement, a regrant program supported by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) in partnership with the City Council and the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of the office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by LMCC - Lower Manhattan Cultural Council.
Ana Carbatti (Actress · Playwright)

Ana Carbatti is a renowned Brazilian actress whose dynamic career spans over three decades across theatre, television, and film. A graduate of the prestigious Casa das Artes de Laranjeiras and the University of Rio de Janeiro, Ana has trained with acclaimed directors and performance collectives, including Tarak Hammam, François Kahn, Teatro Tascabile di Bergamo, and Teatro Potlach, building a foundation of artistic excellence that continues to define her work.

Her stage performances have earned widespread critical acclaim and nominations for Brazil’s most prestigious theatre honors, including the Prêmio APTR and Prêmio Shell for Best Actress—the Brazilian equivalent of the Tony Awards. She was also recognized with the Mambembe Award for Best Supporting Actress and the Novos Talentos Award for Best Actress. On screen, her powerful lead role in Os Inquilinos (The Tenants), directed by Sérgio Bianchi, garnered multiple Best Actress awards at international film festivals in Brazil and Portugal.

Ana's recent theatrical work highlights her dedication to socially engaged storytelling. In Ninguém Sabe Meu Nome (No One Knows My Name), a solo performance co-written with Monica Santana and currently touring SESC theaters, she gives voice to the intimate struggles of a Black mother navigating systemic racism in Brazil. She continues this exploration of silenced narratives as the lead actress and co-writer of The Passion According to Janair, a one-woman show produced by Group Dot BR in New York City. In this bold reinterpretation of Clarice Lispector’s The Passion According to G.H., Ana centers the voice of Janair—the Black maid whose perspective is often ignored—offering a profound meditation on race, class, gender, and narrative power.

With a multifaceted career that bridges continents and mediums, Ana Carbatti remains a vital voice in contemporary Brazilian arts—fiercely committed to crafting performances that provoke, illuminate, and transform.


Andressa Furletti (Director & Playwright)
Originally from Brazil, Andressa Furletti is a multidisciplinary artist based in New York. She is the co-founder and artistic director of Group Dot BR, NY’s only Brazilian theater company (www.group.br.com). Her artistic works include stage and film acting, performance art, art installation, visual arts, and film. Her inspiration comes from her degrees in Biology, Filmmaking, the acting conservatory training at Stella Adler Studio, and many workshops and intensives such as the Mitu Thailand Artist Intensive in Bangkok, the Watermill International Summer Program coordinated by Robert Wilson, and works with the French company Pantheater.

Andressa received several awards including Best Multimedia Show at the United Solo Festival in New York for her debut solo theater show free•dom - a solo of many people, the Outstanding Community Service Award from the Brazilian Community Heritage Foundation, five awards in international film festivals for Separation Sonnet, nine nominations for her performances and artistic creations and the Best Actress Award from the Brazilian International Press Awards. Her visual arts and performance arts works have been in over 20 physical and virtual exhibitions.

ABOUT GROUP DOT BR
Group Dot BR’s mission is to present the “calor” and diversity of Brazilian culture through the performing arts. By using avant-garde, physical, choreographic, and contemporary theatre as tools, Group Dot BR engages a multicultural community with a forward-thinking approach to its “presencial” and online programs. As the only Brazilian theatre company in New York, it supports artists by creating a bridge for exchange beyond borders and holds up Portuguese as a heritage language.

Stay updated at: https://www.group.br.com/janair
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Daniela Botero
iVoice Communications, Inc.
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