Latin American Theatre Review

Abstract:

During the last five years, new creations by Mapuche artists with a clear political imprint have renewed Chile’s national artistic scene. Among these works are Malen by choreographer Ricardo Curaqueo Curiche, premiered in October 2017, and Trewa. Estado-Nación o espectro de la traición by playwright Paula González Seguel, premiered in March 2019. Both creators construct universes and stories that explicitly expose the violence to which the Mapuche have been subjected. Although each piece pertains to a different genre—contemporary dance and documentary theater—they share common elements: gender violence in the Wallmapu, the murder of members of the Mapuche community, the absence of investigation, and the lack of justice. This article reflects on Mapuche authorship in the context of the national art scene, understanding their works as an exercise of activist art capable of staging the cultural, social, and political demands of the Mapuche people. The concept of “bodies without mourning” suggested by Ileana Diéguez leads to a rethinking of the role of art and its creators in contexts marked by violence and the disappearance of marginalized collectivities in Latin America.