The River and The Devil
It is said that during colonial times, in the Bolivian Andean Plateau, the colonisers were speaking of the Desaguadero river as diabolical, as an evil body of water. By calling the river ‘the Devil,’ they aimed at transforming it into a place to be avoided, destroyed, and extracted. The accumulation of centuries of continuous destruction and extractivism resulted in the ongoing desertification of the Desaguadero river; the transformation of its body from water to salt.
In The River and The Devil, addressing both the material and spiritual desertification of the river Desaguadero, Paula Almirón invites the audience into a choreographic reading space in which a circulation of words, sounds, gestures and objects embodies and imagines the ruins of this disappearing body of water. What kind of (life) forms can emerge in a ruin of salt? How can we collectively imagine the living world in an ongoing changing environment?
The River and The Devil is a semi-fictional choreography in which the Devil appears as the river’s guardian. Can we learn from the Devil’s force as a tool for resilience? Where did the Devil go now that water has gone?
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: Florencia Almiron Stage design: Paula Almiron and Florencia Almiron Sound design: Vica Pacheco Spatialization of sound: Simon Lehmans Light design: Estelle Gautier Costumes: Paula Almiron Residency support: wpZimmer, kunstencentrum BUDA, KAAP, Kunstenwerkplaats, C-TAKT, Monty, La Bellone Maison de Spectacle, La Serre Arts Vivants (Montreal), CND Paris, SEN (Studio Etangs Noirs), Tenerife LAV, GC Het Huys, Meyboom Artist-run Spaces Production: Four-Thirty-One vzw (development phase) & Hiros Co-production: C-Takt netwerk, KAAP, Kunstenwerkplaats Supported by: Flemish Government