Sao Paulo's open sewer becomes a stage

[Coming to a sewer near you in Memphis, Cleveland, Los Angeles, and Newerk]

SAO PAULO, Brazil (Reuters) - If all the world's a stage, a Brazilian theatre company sees Sao Paulo's filthy, stinking River Tiete as the perfect venue for a play about the bleak life of a poor working family.

The water is an oily stretch of garbage, debris and industrial pollution. It is also on the route into Sao Paulo from the international airport, giving tourists and residents alike a glimpse of the grittier side of Brazil.

The play, BR-3, mixes suspense, nudity and even a hallucinogenic drugs trip to tell the story of a family who move from the construction of Brasilia, the modernistic capital, in the 1950s to the Sao Paulo working-class neighbourhood of Brasilandia, to the jungle city of Brasileia in remote Acre state.

And the hotter the night is, the worse the smell of the water is. Over 2 1/2 hours, spectators see plastic bottles floating in the brown waters along with plastic foam and car tires. Huge Carnival sculptures are part of the official scenery.

The theatre group, which has previously staged plays in an abandoned hospital and a prison, took measures to keep the crew healthy, including as vaccinations for hepatitis, malaria and tetanus.

One crew member fell into the river at the end of the play last weekend. He went to hospital and doctors put him under observation.

"It was so disgusting", said audience member Mariana Galante, 25. "The guy stayed there, under the water, for a few seconds, and then appeared so stunned.

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