Peruvian theatre and film actress Amaranta Kun has taken the stage as Countess Rosina in a new production of Pierre Beaumarchais classic comedy The Marriage of Figaro at the Alianza Francesa theatre in Miraflores, while mounting a passionate defense of independent artists facing state hurdles in Peru.
Directed by Jean Pierre Gamarra, the staging at the French cultural venue runs from Thursday to Saturday. Audience members entering the theatre are greeted by the music of Spanish pop duo Estopa while the cast is already assembled on stage.
Kun stated that her interpretation of Countess Rosina avoids passive suffering over the Count neglect, focusing instead on strategic cleverness infused with humor. She observed that while it remains unclear whether the female characters in the work achieve all their desires, they successfully demonstrate their fundamental worth.
The play, written by French dramatist Pierre Beaumarchais in 1778 as a sequel to The Barber of Seville, is widely regarded as a landmark satire of European aristocratic privilege.
The Alianza Francesa de Lima, located in the coastal Miraflores district of the capital, is one of Peru prominent cultural venues, regularly hosting contemporary theatrical adaptations and international performing arts events.
Reinterpreting classic female roles
Discussing the prominent portrayal of women in classic drama, Kun noted that master playwrights including Beaumarchais, Moliere, and William Shakespeare possessed a deep understanding of the difficult conditions facing women.
She explained that women navigate greater social restrictions, higher expectations, and a complex array of responsibilities to live peacefully, which ultimately leads them to develop broader practical and intellectual skills.
In Gamarra production of The Marriage of Figaro, the title character Figaro is outsmarted by the women around him because he underestimates their intelligence. Kun pointed out that the female characters invert the expectations of men who assume superior intellect.
She added that the production conveys a powerful social message regarding accountability, as the Count operates under the belief that he can mock everyone without consequence. Showing the subversion of his authority makes the eighteenth-century text feel modern to contemporary audiences.
Moliere and Beaumarchais were instrumental in shaping Western comedic theatre, using farce and sharp dialogue to critique class structure, hypocrisy, and gender dynamics in pre-revolutionary Europe.
Theatre as a political gathering
Reflecting on the societal role of performance, Kun asserted that theatre is fundamentally a political act, though not in the sense of enforcing a rigid ideological agenda as advocated by German playwright Bertolt Brecht.
Instead, she referenced the ancient Greek concept of the polis, explaining that theatre functions politically by gathering the public into a shared space. Audience members and artists come together to experience a phenomenon that exists only while the curtain is raised.
Kun described this shared experience as an ephemeral event that occurs exclusively for the people present in the hall. Unlike recorded media, she noted, live theatre steps away from immediate reality to examine deeper truths, making its preservation essential.
The concept of the polis originated in ancient Greece as the city-state assembly where citizens gathered to debate, govern, and participate in public life, forming the basis of Western democratic participation.
Brecht, a prominent twentieth-century dramatist who developed epic theatre, argued that stage productions should serve as explicit instruments for political education and social transformation.
Critique of cultural policy in Peru
Addressing global social trends, Kun observed that society is currently enduring a widespread regression regarding civil rights. Rights for minority groups, social protections, and women rights, which she had considered firmly established during her youth, are now facing renewed erosion.
Despite these setbacks, she expressed optimism that progress will eventually resume. She noted that periods of social regression are invariably accompanied by attempts to sabotage the arts, precisely because artistic creation exposes systemic failures.
Kun emphasized that art consistently serves as a vehicle of transgression and progress by compelling individuals to question established norms, particularly during periods of crisis.
Turning to national cultural administration, Kun expressed no surprise at the ongoing difficulties facing the artistic and educational sectors in Peru, attributing the situation to a persistent lack of understanding among political leaders and the public.
She outlined the two central responsibilities of Peru Ministry of Culture: preserving the vast historical heritage located across national territory, and actively fostering contemporary artistic creation to reflect present-day life.
Without support for contemporary creation, Kun warned, future generations will lack the cultural record needed to understand what it meant to live as a Peruvian in 2026. She added that the public has never been properly educated regarding the purpose and community benefits of cultural funding.
She condemned the narrative on social media and in public debate that labels artists as state dependents. In reality, she stressed, government institutions create constant obstacles, and artistic projects survive in Peru solely because creators accomplish the impossible through personal effort.
Peru Ministry of Culture, established in 2010 to oversee national heritage preservation and arts development, manages hundreds of pre-Columbian archaeological sites alongside contemporary arts initiatives.
Performing through pregnancy and career background
Kun previous theatrical work includes roles in classic productions of The Barber of Seville, Salomé, and Bertolt Brecht The Threepenny Opera. In The Threepenny Opera, the production transposed the setting into a public laundromat to examine institutional corruption.
She recalled that performing in that production provided vital relief amidst national political despair and government disaster, offering a platform to address pressing social issues through creative work. She praised Peru independent cultural sector for generating innovative proposals despite systemic limitations.
Later this year, Kun is scheduled to return to Mariana de Althaus acclaimed play El sistema solar. She revealed that she previously performed in El sistema solar while pregnant, an experience she also shared during a stage run of Cyrano de Bergerac.
In total, Kun has performed across four distinct theatrical seasons while pregnant. She shared the personal memory of feeling her baby kick in her womb for the first time during a live performance, noting that because several productions were recorded, she will be able to share those moments with her child.
Kun received her formal theatrical training in France at the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Arts et Techniques du Theatre, a national institution dedicated to professional dramatic arts education.
In addition to her acting career, she collaborates on media literacy projects with the Peruvian organization A mi no me la hacen, an initiative dedicated to developing media evaluation skills among the public.
Mariana de Althaus is one of Peru most prominent modern playwrights, known for intimate family dramas such as El sistema solar, which premiered in Lima in 2012 before receiving widespread acclaim.
Cyrano de Bergerac, written by Edmond Rostand in 1897, remains one of the most famous French classic plays, celebrated for its verse dialogue and themes of heroic idealism.
