El Ciudadano
Original article: Facultad de Artes UC traspasa a Fundación Víctor Jara archivos digitales que rescatan la potente faceta teatral del cantautor
Approximately 350 documents related to the theatrical work of Víctor Jara were transferred from the Theater Scene Archive at the UC Arts Faculty to the foundation that preserves the legacy of the beloved Chilean artist.
The materials, sourced from the Theatrical Album Documentary Fund of Bélgica Castro and Alejandro Sieveking, were compiled by Sieveking himself and donated to the Faculty in 2020, with a commitment for their transfer via usage licenses to the VJ Foundation once digitized.
Patrizio Gecele, a lecturer at the School of Theater and an investigator of the UC Theater Scene Archive, was responsible for this work when the albums were received in 2020: «Today, we are not only honoring Víctor’s memory, but we are also fulfilling a promise, settling a debt, and illuminating a void.»
Amanda Jara, Víctor’s daughter and president of the Foundation, expressed gratitude for this collective gesture from Sieveking, who was a close friend of her father.
«Alejandro’s intention sketches a journey filled with nothing but good things. In a moment where we feel so dehumanized, this serves as a reminder of the importance of the simplest things in life, such as respect, friendship, and the desire for material to circulate. Here lies an act of generosity reflected by all parties,» said Amanda Jara.
Víctor Jara and the Theater
A dozen actors and actresses crowd the stage. The set, like their faces, is devoid of embellishments, compelling attention to focus on the intense physical performance, a result of months of preparation alongside Joan Jara.
It is 1969, and the Teatro Antonio Varas presents a critical reading of the Vietnam War with Viet Rock, by Megan Terry, the last play directed by Víctor Jara. In this staging, the cast wears solid-colored spandex, a choice that dissolves any distinction between American and Vietnamese soldiers.
Ten years had passed since his directorial debut with Parecido a la felicidad (1959), for which his colleague and friend Alejandro Sieveking wrote the script. The two met as students at the Theater School of the University of Chile in 1956. There they not only began their training but also forged a friendship intertwined with the stage, shaping a shared trajectory that would prove vital for national theater.
This initial production opened a path that Jara would solidify in the following decade, with works like Los invasores (1963), Ánimas de día claro (1962), and La remolienda (1965). His efforts were early recognized with the Gold Laurel for Best Director (1965) and the Annual Critic’s Award from the Círculo de Periodistas (1965 and 1968), affirming a unique voice that challenged the constraints of his time.
Part of this history is captured in the archives donated by UC to the VJ Foundation. Among the materials are photographs, programs, recordings of productions, and documents reflecting the theatrical activity of the time.
«Today, part of our cultural history finds new hands to hold it and new perspectives to continue it, and that is the most vibrant thing memory can do,» states Alexei Vergara, dean of the Faculty of Arts.
The transfer, celebrated on Thursday, April 23, at the Alberto Vega Space of the School of Theater in Campus Oriente, includes the first 16 albums from Sieveking’s Documentary Fund, covering the period from 1938 to 1987, alongside loose materials that have been digitized in high quality.
This process, conducted thanks to the Project of the Cultural Heritage Fund and in collaboration with Gecele and documentary researcher Catalina Concha, will continue with the digitization of albums No. 17 to No. 25 (1987–2019), which will also be integrated into the Víctor Jara Foundation Archive.
According to the dean, the gesture aims to activate these materials: «Archives also age if no one consults them,» he warns. In this sense, he reminded that the Faculty’s Archive is open to researchers, educators, and students, inviting consultation and use of this and other collections available through scheduled visits to the Oriente campus.
Finally, the VJ Foundation noted that the artist’s connection with UC is not new: in 1969, he directed Antigona by Sophocles, as part of the UC Theater’s programming, inscribing his visionary approach into the institution’s history.
«Today, decades later, that bond strengthens: no longer from the stage, but from memory, in a gesture that reintroduces his work and projects his legacy toward new generations,» emphasized representatives from the Víctor Jara Foundation.
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