The River and The Devil
The River and The Devil invites the audience into the ruins of a disappearing river.
During colonial times in the Bolivian Andean Plateau, the river Desaguadero and its uncontrollable forces were demonized as ‘the Devil’ by colonial settlers. Since then, centuries of extraction have dried up the river, transforming it from water to salt. In The River and The Devil, Paula Almiron reimagines the Devil not as a destructive force but as the guardian of the river, exploring resilience and the remnants of fragmented histories. The river has turned into broken pieces, hiding and moving towards us unannounced.
Combining dance, fiction and collective storytelling, The River and The Devil evokes a sense of living among ruins, asking what remains when a river disappears. Mythological figures and spirits that once protected the river linger as echoes in this haunting meditation on loss and endurance.
Anja Wiesmann
Anja Wiesmann
Bo Vloors
Bo Vloors
Bo Vloors
Anja Wiesmann
Credits
Concept, direction and performance: Paula Almiron Dramaturgical advisers: Simon Asencio, Louise Vanneste, David Weber-Krebs Conceptual dramaturg: Wouter De Raeve Visual artist / salt sculptures: Florencia Almiron Sound design: Vica Pacheco Spatialization of sound: Simon Lehmans Light design: Estelle Gautier Costumes & scenography: Paula Almiron Residency support: wpZimmer, kunstencentrum BUDA, Kunstenwerkplaats, C-TAKT, La Bellone Maison de Spectacle, La Serre Arts Vivants (Montréal), CND Paris, Festival Proximamente – KVS, SEN (Studio Etangs Noirs), Tenerife LAV, GC Het Huys, Meyboom Artist-run Spaces, VGC. Production: Four-Thirty-One vzw (development phase) & Hiros Co-production: C-Takt netwerk, KAAP, Kunstenwerkplaats Supported by: Flemish Government & Vlaamse Gemeenschapscommissie