April 25th Never Happened has been on stage since last Thursday (April 11th) at the Carlos Alberto Theater in Porto.

Written and directed by Ricardo Alves, the dystopian homage to the Carnation Revolution simulates a Portugal that still lives under the Estado Novo and highlights the smaller and less obvious achievements of April.

"Apart from the big national issues (under the Estado Novo) there were very petty things, things so ridiculous that we even forget about them. Girls couldn't wear pants to high school, for example. Remembering those stories is useful for a play like this."

These are the words of Mário Moutinho, the famous voice of Guarda Serôdio or the eternal Andrade, who at 77 is one of the most experienced actors in the cast of the Palmilha Dentada play.
"It's very gratifying. Even working with Palmilha Dentada, I'd never worked with this company before. I went into this job with a lot of enthusiasm," the actor told ZAP.
Mário recently played a Salazarist in Saramago's play A Noite. A young audience member has already asked him how, as an openly left-wing person, he plays a reactionary "who feels like going on stage and beating up".
"Man, because I knew them. I lived with them. I did radio with them - and I left radio because I didn't want to be a parrot," he replied.
Returning to the current play, but keeping the conversation on young people, Mário Moutinho believes that O 25 de Abril Nunca Aconteceu can play an educational role: "I'm very curious to know how young people are going to look at this play and what questions they're going to ask us. I'm waiting to understand the concerns of young people."

"Young people may think that (what is shown in the play) are such ridiculous things, that they are an exaggeration" - but they really did happen, he recalls.

In fact, director Ricardo Alves admitted that he thought a lot about young people when he wrote this play.

The April 25th that really happened

"It's the happiest day of my life".

This is how Mário Moutinho sums it up when asked about his memories of April 25, 1974 (the real one).

And how would you describe April 25, 2024? "Dangerous. We're in a very complicated, very complex situation. And dangerous. Not just in Portugal.
In fact, the parliamentary elections in March - as the director had already revealed - changed the final part of the script: "The last act is no longer a joyful act, but a frightening one."

Mário Moutinho hopes that this piece will be a wake-up call. "Art doesn't transform, but it allows people to think, to be alerted. We're saying 'this exists' and now we're all going to talk about it".

And he underlines the warning about the real situation in the country: "We have to be vigilant. Because the problem with dictatorships is mainly due to people's inattention and anger - which is legitimate. People are angry about something. If you don't want to use the term 'angry', people have their expectations disappointed. And since there isn't enough information, since the information isn't correct...", he explained.

And that's where culture comes in, to help (in)train. "Training, culture and education are very important. That's why culture scares many right-wingers. Salazar used to say that a cultured people is a subversive people. If we are educated and informed, we are protected against populism," he analyzes.

Mário believes that, historically, these extreme right-wing cycles happen (not just in Portugal) because "social democracy betrays the principles it promises and its historical principles", making "concessions, not to people and their work, but to privilege and capital".

April 25th Never Hap pened will be on stage until April 27th.