Contexto

In the Contexto series, we present a programme of moderated conversations between two guests whose academic, political or activist work intersects with themes explored in Theatro Circo’s programme.

This session is presented in dialogue with We, Alone, the new theatre production by Sara Barros Leitão and her company Cassandra, which reflects on reproductive rights and abortion as Portugal approaches the twentieth anniversary of the referendum that led to the decriminalisation of Voluntary Termination of Pregnancy. Freely inspired by a verse by Maria Teresa Horta, Sara Barros Leitão’s new work seeks to recover the memory of the political and activist process that led to the decriminalisation of abortion in Portugal, while asking what still remains to be done.

For this conversation, we welcome Ana Campos (gynaecologist and abortion rights activist) and Rita Rato (researcher specialising in women’s resistance movements, former Director of the Aljube Museum – Resistance and Freedom, and politician) to revisit the history of the struggle for women’s reproductive rights in Portugal, from the Estado Novo dictatorship to the present day, and to help us understand the current legal and medical framework governing access to Voluntary Termination of Pregnancy (VTP).

Ana Campos is a consultant gynaecologist and obstetrician, as well as an abortion rights activist. Following the decriminalisation of abortion in 2007, she was a member of the working group responsible for developing the procedures for implementing the law and integrating VTP services into the Portuguese National Health Service. Rita Rato holds a degree in Political Science and International Relations and served as a Member of the Portuguese Parliament for the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP). Between 2020 and 2026, she was Director of the Aljube Museum – Resistance and Freedom, where she developed curatorial and research projects focusing on women’s resistance movements during the Estado Novo dictatorship.