The 90-day deadline given by the São Paulo court to Cia Mungunzá to vacate the public domain occupied by the Container Theater, in the Santa Ifigênia region, center of the capital, expired this Monday (29/12), but the group is still seeking an agreement with the municipal administration to be able to change address.
According to the city of São Paulo, the term of the agreement signed with the company provided for the complete removal of the structures this Monday and the transfer to another space proposed by the municipal management. At MetropolisesTeatro de Container said it accepted the new address, but claimed it did not have the resources to make the change.
The company told the report that it was contacting São Paulo City Hall daily to ask for help in organizing the change. As of this publication, according to the theater, no date has been set for the meeting.
“We hope that the expropriation will not happen accidentally, causing immense trauma and immense damage to the city. This is 18 years of history and construction,” the company said of possible expropriation.
In a note, the city hall said it was offering financial support of R$100,000 to help clean up the address, but theater officials demanded a payment of R$2 million, an amount considered “incompatible” by the municipal administration.
Eviction notice
The conflict between the parties began in May this year, when the artists of the Teatro de Container were surprised by an extrajudicial eviction notice with a deadline of 15 days to vacate the grounds.
In September, the São Paulo court gave Companhia Mungunzá 90 days to leave its address on Rua dos Gusmões. “The theater troupe is acting in a completely irresponsible manner by creating obstacles to the vacancy of the land on Rua dos Gusmões as the deadline set by the courts approaches,” said the city of São Paulo.
The municipal management also indicated that “it does not rule out taking all the necessary measures so that the decision to release the land is respected”.
In addition to the moving costs, Cia Mungunzá is concerned about the risk of a new eviction at the address proposed by the town hall, located Rua Helvétia, in Campos Elíseos. According to the theater group, they asked for the land to be transferred for 30 years, but the counter-offer was for 2 years.
“In these conditions, we remain without the possibility of moving forward. We cannot transfer the theater to a space from which we can be expelled again at any time,” the Company said in a message on social networks.
“Throughout the second half of 2025, we sought dialogue and sensitivity from municipal leadership on the importance of the Container Theater. In return, we have seen inefficiency, monocratic denials and treatment that have placed us as delinquents, even after more than a decade of partnership and joint construction.
Protest and confrontation
On August 19, a demonstration by artists linked to the theater ended in a clash with agents of the Metropolitan Civil Guard (GCM).
Videos show GCMs using shields and pepper spray against the company’s performers and other protesters. In the footage, one of the officers can be seen pointing a gun at a group of protesters.
Protesters shouted slogans and questioned the actions of São Paulo City Hall.
Dispute between the company and the town hall
- At the beginning of August, Companhia Mungunzá received a notification to leave the space where the Container Theater operates. The document was signed by the deputy mayor of Sé, Coronel Salles, and the 15-day deadline ended on August 21.
- In May, the company received an extrajudicial notification from the town hall, stating that “the area is a strategic point for a new housing program“.
- The land where the Théâtre des Conteneurs is located is public and is occupied by Mungunzá company since 2016.
- In the eviction order, the city said it would use the space for a new housing program.
- The management of Ricardo Nunes (MDB) also claimed to have presented proposals for new properties that could be occupied by the theater.
- The company, for its part, said it was surprised by the decision.
- In an interview with MetropolisesIn May, one of the Munguzá artists, Marcos Felipe, said that the theater was facing several challenges, always in dialogue with the São Paulo City Hall.
- “We built the Container Theater, which is a reference and has hosted, during these 9 years, different communities. Together we have already promoted more than 4 thousand artistic and social actions” he said.
In a press release published at the time, the town hall declared that the action was motivated by the vacancy of land next to the Théâtre des Conteneurs.
“The building, which is closed and will be demolished by the City of São Paulo, was invaded by a group of people who used clandestine access from the theater grounds. Given the invasion and the refusal to vacate this property, an intervention by the security forces was necessary. The place is locked and preserved,” the text specifies.
Company artists said at the time that theater equipment was stored in the locked building.
Container Theater
The space used by the Companhia Mungunzá de Teatro was assembled in 11 shipping containers and, in almost a decade of operation, it has already been nominated for national and international awards for this initiative.
For artists, “it is not fair that in São Paulo we have so many unused buildings and land and that the municipality chooses to free up space intended for culture and social development.”
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