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/ARTS WEEKLY/THEATRE-ARGENTINA: Relocated Town Searches for Its Roots – Underwater

Marcela Valente

BUENOS AIRES, Apr 25 2005 (IPS) - When the water level is low, what is normally a lake becomes a vast expanse of rubble, where the residents of Federación, in eastern Argentina, search for traces of the town submerged almost three decades ago to build the Salto Grande dam, on the border with Uruguay.

Located in the province of Entre Ríos, some 480 kilometres north of Buenos Aires, the city of Federación was moved from its original site to allow for the construction of this major binational hydropower complex.

The urge to explore the ruins of old buildings and salvage objects from the past is largely inspired by the work of a theatre group striving to keep the memory of this lost city alive.

For the last nine years, without a break, the members of Tavajhu – which means people who travel from town to town in the Guaraní indigenous language – have been presenting three or even four weekly performances of the play “Aquel mi pueblo” (That Was My Town).

The play is a vivid recreation of the dramatic uprooting suffered by the people of Federación. While most local residents have seen it dozens of times, the play is also a way for visitors to learn the history of this city buried beneath an enormous artificial lake.

“We have given over 2,000 performances so far, and we plan to continue for as long as we are able,” said Juan Gibert, an actor and founding member of the group.

“The younger generations need to know what happened, and that’s why we take the play to schools as well,” Gibert told IPS.

“What happened” is the remarkable history of Federación, whose residents were relocated in 1979 so that their city could be demolished and then flooded to create a dam on the Uruguay River. Even today, over 25 years later, when the water level drops, the past resurfaces.

The city’s relocation took place after decades of uncertainty. Plans to build the dam dated all the way back to a bilateral agreement signed by Argentina and Uruguay in 1946, and preliminary construction began in 1974. When the time finally came for the residents to clear out, the population of Federación had already shrunk by one-half.

The project was carried out during Argentina’s 1976-1983 military dictatorship. The original plan was to compensate the city’s residents, who would then be expected to find a new place to live on their own.

In the end, however, the de facto regime agreed to relocate them together in a new settlement 23 kilometres from the original city of Federación. In a period of just 18 months, a new town rose up, designed for a population of 10,000, and was christened with the same name as the city left behind.

The new Federación is located on the shores of the Salto Grande reservoir, which spans 78,000 hectares and completely covers the former city and its surroundings.

Once or twice a year, the water level drops enough to allow the local residents to walk or drive over the ruins of the old city’s streets, picking out what is left of the floor of an old bakery or the tiles of the old parish church.

“We go twice a week and always bring something back for the museum,” said Gibert.

The museum, which holds objects from the old Federación, is housed in the town’s relocated church that was originally built in 1846.

When the water is at its normal level, the “tour” of the sunken city can be made by boat. The local authorities have mapped out the original city by erecting posts that reach above the water’s surface and hold signs identifying the main landmarks of the original Federación.

Throughout the 1980s, the town’s residents suffered the trauma experienced by anyone subjected to forced uprooting and exile.

“When we arrived in the new city, the housing construction still wasn’t finished, and even worse, there weren’t enough dwellings for everyone. It was really difficult to adapt, because we had different neighbours, and lived in different parts of the town, and the places we were used to visiting were all gone,” recounted Gibert, who was nine years old at the time.

For many years, the city was completely devoid of any cultural or artistic activity. “It seemed like all of that had been left underwater,” noted Gibert.

The trauma was so deeply felt that over a decade of mourning was needed before the residents could turn to the task of reconstructing the memory of a place that no longer existed.

But once this period of mourning had passed, a group of local amateur actors formed Tavajhu, and with “That Was My Town”, they brought the past back into the present.

After several initial attempts to bring the town’s history to the stage failed, the group finally struck upon the current storyline, which features an elderly couple who don’t want to leave their home in the old city.

The local residents identified so closely with the characters that they have gone to see the play over and over again. In the process, they have contributed to the consolidation of a new theatrical group.

Since then, the city has grown, and so has Tavajhu. Thanks to the development of thermal spas in the surrounding area, Federación receives a large number of tourists every year. And every week, the group presents its signature play, along with four other performances that include street theatre and puppet shows.

Since 1998, Tavajhu has also hosted the annual National Popular Theatre Encounter, which draws the participation of groups from around the country, as well as neighbouring Uruguay.

“Now the tourists come for the thermal spas, but they stay longer when they learn the real story of Federación,” Gibert said proudly.