Who are the “heróis do mar” (“heroes of the sea”) that will “levantar hoje de novo o esplendor de Portugal” (raise again Portugal ‘s splendour)? (excerpt from the Portuguese national anthem). Must the generations that enslaved entire nations continue representing what it is to be Portuguese? Who truly belongs to this “nobre povo” (“noble people”)?

In the exploration and analysis of national imaginaries, symbolic, linguistic and narrative elements of great relevance: that infiltrate public discourses about the nation, shape identities and grant legitimacy to regimes. It is in this context that the visual artist and performer Carlos Azeredo Mesquita proposes to investigate one of the most popular national symbols: the national anthem. In “Über Alles”, Carlos Azeredo Mesquita explores the banal and universal nature of modern nationalism that infiltrates our daily life under the guise of small symbols and linguistic habits that define the idea of “us”.

“Über Alles” is a durational performance in which the performers explore the history and the stories, iconographic and sociological elements in national anthems. Reflecting on the role that these songs have in the formation of the mythology of a nation and in the dynamics of inclusion and exclusion associated to this process.