The Mouth of the Gods

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Cover image: Edith Ramos in her costume, holding a charango Photo: Ursula Durán

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CONTENTS THE MOUTH OF GODS

Michael Walling

CREDITS THE MUSIC

Prof. John Sloboda

FROM THE ARTISTS

Edith Ramos Guerra Rafael Montero Bella Lane

1. The Ceremonial Cloth 2. The Paracas Mantle José Navarro Jessica Mirella Luong Maria da Luz Ghoumrassi

HISTORICAL NOTES

The Valladolid debate Túpac Amaru II Berta Cáceres

FROM THE VOLUNTEERS

Mia Clarke

Tessa Crichton-Miller Roxana M Solis Camilo Inti Soler Caicedo

HERITAGE PARTNERSHIPS

Mimi Waitzman

Johnny Figueroa Rodriguez Robert Gutierrez Danny Zborover

THINGS I CAN’T EVEN IMAGINE YET

Kelsey Yuhara

ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES

Chancay Doll © The Trustees of the British Museum 3

Michael Walling speaking at the ORIGINS Festival. Photo: John Cobb

THE MOUTH OF GODS

- Michael Walling, Artistic Director The idea of remembering (re-membering) is particularly powerful in a performance where a central scene deals with the brutal execution of Túpac Amaru; a freedom fighter and Indigenous leader whose punishment for daring to defy colonial rule was to be dis-membered. His body was torn apart so that there would be no marked grave, and no hope of resurrection. In the face of the institutional brutality displayed towards his people by Europeans thirsty for the wealth of Indigenous lands, the re-membering of Túpac Amaru constitutes an ongoing performance of resistance through cultural revitalisation.

The Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez once said: “What matters in life is not what happens to you, but what you remember and how you remember it.” Throughout this heritage and performance project, THE MOUTH OF THE GODS, people from Latin American backgrounds have been engaged in an act of collective remembering, forging new and often surprising connections with their histories and cultures. The work has been creative and physical, lending emotional weight and power to the process of remembering: people have been embroidering, singing, playing, building, sewing, enacting and dancing their own histories.

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As K’iche’ Guatemalan Nobel Peace Laureate Rigoberta Menchú Tum has said: “Our history is a living history, that has throbbed, withstood and survived many centuries of sacrifice.

Now it comes forward again with strength. The seeds, dormant for such a long time, break out today… although they germinate in a world characterised by confusion.”

This revitalising of Indigenous culture is not only of huge significance for Indigenous people themselves, but for all humanity. In the last few years, there has been a growing awareness around colonial histories, and a call for reparative justice. It is not enough, however, to emphasise the victimhood of the colonised. Indigenous people have always resisted the exploitation of their lands, waters and bodies, and have fought to maintain their cultural identities, languages and practices, even when these have been suppressed or integrated into European modes. The baroque music of the Chiquitano opera SAN FRANCISCO XAVIER and the rich cornucopia of the Codex Martínez Compañón are potent examples of Indigenous vitality. Although their apparent form and literal meaning may adhere to European models, their underlying energy, rhythms and ideas remain true to their Indigenous cultural roots.

Remembering Indigenous heritage offers us the potential for co-existence in a shifting world order, suggesting how through cultural exchange we can learn jointly to inhabit the planet we all share. It also points a route towards a more equitable and sustainable relationship with the planet herself: Pachamama, or Mother Earth. Working on THE MOUTH OF THE GODS has helped us all to think in terms of increased respect and care towards the fragile and desecrated lands of which we are the temporary custodians.

The sacred waters. Image: Codex Martínez Compañón.

Public domain.

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Edith in traditional dress. Photo: Oscar Delgado

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Border Crossings ORIGINS Festival in association with Hoxton Hall presents

THE MOUTH OF THE GODS The Singers Edith Ramos Guerra Rafael Montero

Conceived and Directed by Michael Walling

The Actors Tim Hudson Simon Rhodes Danny Scheinmann

Musical Director Matthew Morley Choreographers Jessica Mirella Luong Maria da Luz Ghoumrassi

The Dancers Nubia Merchan Estefanía Solórzano Hilda Mayta Susana Stanford Rosa Luna Ricapa Roxana M Solis Camilo Inti Soler Caicedo Ximena Purita Banegas Zallio

Design Team Bella Lane (Textiles) Valentina Miranda (Costumes) Isabella Sarmiento-Abadia (Stage) José Navarro (Puppets)

The Puppeteers José Navarro, Master Puppeteer Gustavo Quino Quispe Bella Lane Tianxin Xia

Lighting Designer Nick Moran Associate Director (Community Engagement) Lucy Dunkerley

El Parnaso Hyspano Ensemble Fábio Fernandes: Guitar/theorbo Pablo Tejedor-Gutiérrez: Cello Joana Isidoro Praça: Violin Johnny Figueroa Rodriguez: Indigenous Percussion and Wind Edmund Taylor: Violin

Assistant Directors Susana Millán Florencia Cordeu Music Consultant Prof. John Sloboda OBE FBA (El Parnaso Hyspano)

Directed from the harpsichord

by Matthew Morley

Children’s Music Coach John Apps

The Children Hoxton Garden Primary School (27th Nov) Olga Primary School (28th Nov) Virginia Primary School (29th Nov) Hackney New Primary School (30th Nov) Harris Academy Clapham (30th Nov) St Paul’s with St Michael’s School (1st Dec)

Stage Managers Phoebe Butcher Evie Rostant Lighting William Gibbs (Lighting Associate & Production Electrician) Felix Weis (Assistant Lighting Designer)

Community Dance Group Elizabeth Salazar Maria José G R Lourdes Skelton Silvanna GR Robert S Yanire Suateina Fabio Marieol Isabella P Bertha Colque Alba Hernández Genesis Sarai M C Carla Ozco Maria Orfilia Rojas Maceto Gabriela Ramirez Guevara Eliana Paola Rodríguez Edith Giovanna Quinteros Miranda Isabella Sarmiento Abadia Marieta Valdiva Lefort Tessa Crichton-Miller 7

THE MOUTH OF THE GODS Project Manager Kelsey Yuhara

Arjmand Aziz Katiushka Borges Helena Carthew Fay Clark Mia Clarke Chloé Cornell Tessa Crichton-Miller Nati Denniff-Jones Jillian Ellis Lakshmi Adapa

Csilla Tyahun Ivana Mikalovna Maria Da Luz Ghoumrassi

Paracas Mantle Embroidery Master Embroiderer: Bella Lane Mahalia Dumas Vivienne Gibbon Helen Gutierrez Barley Massey Valentina Miranda Jose Navarro Julís Pachao Jimena Pardo Zamora Patricia Plummer Gamze Şanlı Isabel Maria Bogo Saavedra Puppet Making Master Puppeteer: José Navarro Tianxin Xia Gustavo Quino Quispe Perle-Louise B

Richard Sanderson Isabella Sarmiento-Abadia Anasuya Sharma Kate Shurety Roxana M Solis Ellie Stacey Gustavo Quino Quispe Lucinda Weber Tianxin Xia Kelsey Yuhara

Valentina Miranda Isabella Sarmiento-Abadia Claudia Ramirez Julio

Dance Development workshop participants Doris Chauca Yudy Fuller Tupac Alfonso Marieta Valdiva Lefort Marisol Limón Silicéo Sandra Araujo Almudena G Yamileth Valencia Hoyos Marketing & Social Media Manager Natalie Ng Milavič Social Media Volunteers Leyla Ghoumrassi Samuel L Videographer & Photographer John Cobb Video Assistant Hing Tsang Press Emma Wall at Chloé Nelkin Consulting External Evaluator Siân Rosa Hunter Dodsworth Community Outreach Lucy Dunkerley José Navarro Education Lucy Dunkerley John Apps Robert Gutierrez Johnny Figueroa Rodriguez Programme Designed by Wassaa Design

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With Many Thanks to: Community Partners at IRMO, AMPLA, Calthorpe Community Gardens and Festival Andino: Gemma Grass-Orkin, IRMO Javiera Sandoval, AMPLA / Gasworks Johnny Rodriguez, Festival Andino Cecilia Gonzalez-Cruz, Calthorpe Community Gardens Mila Campoy, Calthorpe Community Gardens Angie Gomez, IRMO Vanessa Fukuda, IRMO Producing Partners at Hoxton Hall: Sam Campbell, Programme Manager Rob Callender, Head of Technical & Operations Stuart Cox, Chief Executive Poppy Kay, Youth Engagement Grace Hammonds, Youth Engagement

HERITAGE PARTNERS: The British Museum Danny Zborover, Curator & Head of the Americas Section Santiago Valencia Parra, Digital Curator SDCELAR Horniman Museum & Gardens Mimi S. Waitzman, Senior Curator of Musical Collections & Cultures Saava Benjamin Busenze Balagadde, Assistant Curator of Musical Collections & Cultures Lucy Maycock, Formal Learning Manager For September 12, “Hear It Live” at Horniman Museum Katarzyna Kowalik, Harpsichord

FUNDING PARTNERS:

The National Lottery Heritage Fund Cockayne Foundation & London Community Foundation Marchus Trust Part of the United Nations’ International Decade of Indigenous Languages

Special Thanks to: St. Bride’s Church, Gaby Baker, Ed Borgnis, Stephanie Burell, Justin Cannon, James Collins, Paul and Susana Goulder, Joanne Hedley, Alba Hernandez, Kurikindi, Colin McDonough, Teresa Molano, Skye Palmer-Jones and West London Free School, Pedro Patel, Alison Porter and Tower Hamlets Arts & Music Education Service, Keira Rathbone, Katherine Sagar at NLHF, Xanthe Starr and Hackney Music Service, Emma Townsend, Samuel Wilson, Jamie Wiseman, Luca Wiseman, Sarah Vigan, Nisha Walling

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Dance Workshop in June. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

THE MUSIC

- Prof. John Sloboda Five years ago, I had no knowledge of the amazing riches of early Latin American music. As a long-established UK-based singer and keyboard player, I managed to pass most of my musical career unaware of this remarkable genre.

Much of this music has been rediscovered over the last 30 to 40 years, thanks to musicologists who have uncovered, transcribed, and edited old manuscripts found in churches, monasteries, and libraries— documents that had been largely ignored. Thousands of pieces remain unperformed today, and it is an honour to be part of reviving these works with an Indigenous perspective.

Joining Rafael Montero’s ensemble El Parnaso Hyspano in 2020 opened my eyes to the vitality and skill of this music. Though influenced by European musicians who arrived during the colonial era, Latin American music developed its own unique character, blending Indigenous and other nonEuropean cultural elements.

The earliest surviving notated piece from the continent is the processional hymn “Hanaq Pachap Kusikuynin,” written in the Indigenous Quechua language. Composed by an anonymous 10

Inca student of the Franciscan priest Juan Pérez de Bocanegra, it was published in 1631 in the volume Ritual, formulario e institución de curas.

Though commonly understood as a hymn to the Virgin Mary, the text does not explicitly name her. Instead, it features imagery of a fruitful mother, which for many Indigenous people evokes Pachamama, the Andean goddess of fertility.

While the Indigenous peoples of Latin America generally adopted Catholicism, often with varying degrees of enthusiasm and freedom, they also found ways to keep their ancient sacred traditions alive through customs, rituals, and music. Some Christian leaders even embraced the coexistence of Indigenous traditions with Christian rites, a blending that is known as “syncretism.” Hanaq Pachap is a celebrated example of this fusion.

In our production, Hanaq Pachap sits at the heart of the performance. The pieces preceding and following it highlight how Indigenous influences have persisted within a broadly Christian framework.

The first half of the piece features selections from the Codex Martínez Compañón, compiled around 1782

by Bishop Baltasar Jaime Martínez Compañón of Trujillo, Peru. This extraordinary volume contains 1,411 watercolours and 20 musical scores, offering a vivid portrait of life in northern Peru. The musical examples were probably written out

by Pedro José Solis, master of music

Dance Workshop in April. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

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Several operas, or fragments of operas survive. All have religious themes. Most were written in Spanish.

Contemporary accounts make it clear that these were performed in costume, generally on special occasions, including the visits of bishops and colonial dignitaries. European commentators at these spectacles were amazed at the musicality of the Indigenous performers. These were often performed to large audiences, and were inspirational commentaries on the lives of the Jesuit saints and the beneficence of the Christian God.

at Trujillo Cathedral. Some pieces are instrumental dances; others are religious and popular songs, with texts in both Spanish and Indigenous languages. Preserved in the Royal Library of Spain from the time it was presented to King Charles IV, the codex has been a subject of controversy, with both Spain and Peru claiming ownership. For now, it remains on permanent loan to Peru—a reminder of the broader questions surrounding the rightful ownership of colonial-era artefacts. The wider issue of ownership of works made in colonial times and “claimed” by the former colonial powers is a heavily contested one which will vex European cultural organisation for many generations to come.

SAN FRANCISCO XAVIER is unique in that it is written in the Indigenous Chiquitano language, now nearly extinct. The reconstruction of the text (and its possible translations) has been at best an approximate process informed by the few living Elders who have knowledge to draw on. The same is true of parts of the music itself, which became lost or indecipherable over time. Our performance is based on a reconstruction by musicologist Piotr Nawrot, who has painstakingly edited thousands of pages of Jesuit manuscripts from the reductions.

The second half of the performance is devoted to the opera SAN FRANCISCO XAVIER, composed around 1720 in the Jesuit missions of Bolivia. For nearly 200 years, Jesuit missionaries operated in Latin America, establishing “reductions” where Indigenous people could live in relative security in return for adopting Christianity. Although the Jesuit legacy is complex and problematic, their contributions to the musical life of these communities are undeniable. They taught Indigenous people to perform and compose music, sometimes writing sacred works themselves, like Italian-born Domenico Zipoli, who composed for the missions.

Many pieces remain anonymous, as only European composers signed their works, while the unsigned works were written by Indigenous composers.

The opera depicts a dialogue between Saint Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, and his disciple, Saint Francis Xavier. However, these Jesuit saints are never named in the sung text, and the words used for “god” and “heaven” are Chiquitano concepts that pre-date the invasions. The characters discuss the glory of God and the promise of heaven for all, Indigenous and European alike. Though the plot is 12

Dance Rehearsal in October. Photo: John Cobb

aspects of the European music that existed in the cathedrals and courts.

static, the work is similar to a sacred oratorio, designed to inspire through its arias and instrumental dances.

Nawrot has coined the neologism “Opera Edificante” to decribe this work, which was given its first (and only) professional recording in 2011 under the direction of Argentinian conductor Gabriel Garrido. This is its first UK staging.

So this performance is a creative response to the indications found in these manuscripts. It draws on Indigenous and Mediterranean/Iberian sensibilities, since it was mainly from Italy, Spain and Portugal that European musicians migrated to Latin America.

Our ensemble brings to the music a robust, syncopated drive which provides an alternative perspective to the more measured and restrained approaches typical of the Northern European approach more common in our concert halls and recording studios. I am proud to have been a small part of bringing this “Latin voice” to our shores.

How should we approach this music in contemporary performance? The surviving scores are often minimal, providing only a melody line. As in early European music, these scores were intended as a foundation for creative elaboration. In this sense, Latin American early music shares much in common with jazz and folk traditions; more than with the more formalistic 13

Edith in rehearsals. Photo: John Cobb

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EDITH RAMOS GUERRA - Indigenous Andean SOPRANO This project, THE MOUTH OF THE GODS, resonates with me because it is the expression of many voices that are often forgotten or silenced, ignored or unwritten, even in the histories of their own peoples. Even though this project has been created in London, where much of the world’s “official” history was written, it has been built sincerely with hands, feet, souls, wounds, voices, truths, minds, dreams, and above all, with love. Love for our diverse presences with their sweet and sour roots, like the grain that is the bread of life, like the essential drops of water that promise a change of season and new times ahead.

Edith in traditional dress. Photo: Oscar Delgado

Here and now in the womb of art, where everything is possible, far from home, I am learning the stories of siblings from other latitudes, told with much respect and care. I believe that we are creating, with all the strength of the ones who came before us, a necessary voice of hope.

I am sure that there are other peoples who, like my own people, are not afraid of Pain, but who accept it, alongside its sister Death. But not everyone in the world accepts Injustice. Those who gave their lives seeking Justice in the past remain present beside us with those who seek Justice today.

Since our first online meetings, and now here in London, we have been invited to be present in this waking dream that fights oblivion and indifference and summons what is sacred: the heartbeat of all beings in the cosmos to which we belong, where we, like every other being, can offer our humble contributions towards reconciliation and healing.

Thank you for inviting me to be a part of this waking dream. I say “waking” because art always awakens the ones who create it, as well as the ones who hear and see.

Thank you.

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RAFAEL MONTERO

and music. Many Latin American classical musicians and singers still are focused on Europe and as a result their knowledge of our own culture, ourselves, is lacking. We should celebrate the unique mixed cultures in Latin America and not try to copy or sound like a British singer. We Latin American singers need more fully to own our voices and hearts in the music.

- Quechua / Aymara TENOR l come from a family of musicians.

My father was from Potosí, Bolivia, and he played the charango very well. My mother a was school director but also a soprano singer. I grew up with Indigenous and Mestizo Andean music, surrounded by Guaraní sounds in San Pedro de Jujuy. When l went to university, l thought that opera was for white people and audiences: l was afraid of it not being my place. When l auditioned at the Conservatoire Nacional in Córdoba, Argentina, l was surprised that my Spanish teacher pointed me towards chamber music.

We had ONLY European classical music and some Argentinian composers of European background. Such composers were very much looking towards Europe as the focus of culture

I see the relationship between Western and Indigenous cultures as one of Western dominance and a sense of superiority, which still does not give place to Indigenous people in all kinds of ways, including in a musical culture which either excludes Indigenous music or “Westernises” it, making it almost unrecognisable to the Mestizo or Indigenous people for whom it was written and who first performed it.

Fortunately there are also enlightened European artists and cultural actors 16

Guitar and dance.

Image: Codex Martínez Compañón. Public domain

Rafael Montero performs the HEAR IT LIVE Concert at the Horniman. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

music of the European colonisers. l have worked to recreate a more authentic Indigenous way of singing, based on an understanding and close experience of the local way of singing this music written for my ancestors, and which I heard sung from childhood, both in churches and also in family gatherings.

who want to learn from Indigenous cultures and accept our cultures as they are, at the same level.

To prepare myself for this production, in April this year I visited the Misión de San Javier in Bolivia, where the Indigenous opera SAN FRANCISCO XAVIER was first performed, and spoke with the descendants of the Indigenous people who performed it. It was very touching to see how they reappropriated this opera and brought it back to life in the church where it was sung for the first time.

For them this opera is not just music but a connection with the community, a celebration together.

For me, the essence of any such piece of artistic work is to demythologise and “de-other” Indigenous cultures, so that Indigenous culture moves from being an exotic spectacle for European audiences towards being one integral part of a multicultural society where no particular tradition is privileged.

It is therefore an honour for me to open this opera with a curandero blessing of the space, for a spiritual journey of struggle, redemption and reconciliation.

I want audiences to experience the power and vitality of an artistic tradition which has its roots in ancient pre-colonial societies, but which interacted with, and drew from, the 17

BELLA LANE - Amazonian Peruvian 1. THE CEREMONIAL CLOTH

The name THE MOUTH OF THE GODS inspired me to create the design for this piece. It embraces traditions, past and present human views of spirituality, and of ways of seeing life, death and after death. For many, death is the end of everything; in the Andean world it leads to the afterlife, as the body becomes a seed and a new life starts.

With all this in mind, I decided to embody and combine this concept with one of the iconic pieces of cloth the Andean people wear, namely the manta, worn by both males and females for everyday use since ancestral times. Mantas not only cover and protect the wearer from the cold, but also help the wearer to carry many objects inside. These include food, vegetables, pets, babies and many other items.

In former times they were made by hand using back-strap weaving, intertwining beautiful bright colours for females and more muted colours for males. For festivities and rituals, they were more elaborate, with embroidery joining the panels. They are strong and can last more than a lifetime, and were passed from generation to generation.

Drawing on all of this inspiration from the past, I put together a final collage for the mural that incorporated images found in textiles and on pottery from pre-Columbian cultures. Featured on the textile mural is an image of a pez (fish) from Costa Central. A colibrí (hummingbird) from Nazca Culture (100 BCE to 800 CE). Cóndors from Costa Central. Sun God from Chancay Culture (1000 -1470 CE).

Crying and sad human figures from Chincha Culture (900 CE - 1450 CE). And finally an anthropomorphic urn from the Recuay Culture (200 BCE - 600 CE).

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Volunteers working on the ceremonial cloth at Calthorpe Community Gardens. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

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All of these images from different cultures and times on a single piece of linen, measuring 4.5 metres long by 3 metres wide.

Working this mantle with a group of community volunteers was an awakening for many, as they had never seen such beautiful designs from ancient cultures before. Many have learnt of the existence of such cultures in ancient Peru for the first time. This has been the journey of a lifetime and a deep well of learning for everybody on the project.

Top left: Traditional artwork of community producing an embroidered cloth.

Image: Codex Martínez Compañón. Public domain Top right: Volunteers present the first panel of ceremonial cloth at Festival Andino. Image: Michael Walling Lower: Stitchers at work on the Paracas Mantle. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara 21

Paracas Mantle © The Trustees of the British Museum

2. THE PARACAS MANTLE The making of this 21st Century Paracas Mantle is the results of many years of meticulous research. Original Paracas Mantle collections in the Peruvian museums of Lima, Ica and Paracas have been studied. Similarly, access has been obtained to the British Museum stored collection, and to ancient Paracas Mantles and associated treasures held in the Brooklyn and Metropolitan Museums of New York, and the National World Museum of Culture in Gothenburg, Sweden. Now, in this year of 2024 after an interval of thousands of years, we have succeeded in re-creating a latter-day Paracas Mantle. This has been achieved together with the help of a cosmopolitan band of dedicated volunteers, some who already had embroidery experience and others who had never done any stitching before. They worked with us for many hours and days over a period of eight months embroidering the Mantle in London at Hoxton Hall and in the garden of one of the volunteers during the summer. With needle and thread and stitch by stitch, together we embroidered, connected and entwined the spiritual beliefs embodied in the sacred Paracas Stitch.

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Ahead of our initial workshop in early March, we also spent time natural dyeing the base fabric of our mantle, a jute (hessian) cloth. After several tests, finally we decided to use Peruvian “aji panca” pigments to achieve a pale rose colour, giving a slightly different shade from the natural colour of the jute. We avoided making the base too dark, as this would have been a problem for the stitchers to see clearly the designs on the fabric when embroidering.

The process of effecting natural dye in UK is difficult in the absence of strong sunshine: Indigenous dyes require this as a natural mordant. We used tapestry needle size 18 for the embroidery and cotton Perlé embroidery thread No.3. The individual figures are 19cm x 25cm approximately and the full size of the mantle is 1.2m x 4.5m.

Tessa, Mia, Isabella and Gamze at the British Museum Archaeological Research Collection.

Photo: Michael Walling

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We started to embroider the mantle in March with the participation of 15 volunteers. Since then the number in our group has fluctuated. Together we have explored this rich legacy of the Paracas people and the culture left to humanity. From there we can start to understand our origins in a better way, to live with their practices, wisdom, art, and spirituality. And perhaps most importantly nowadays, to live with respect for Nature as the Paracas people did.

Honouring Mother Earth, the cosmos and the sea was a way of life for them. Possibly, with this greater understanding we, the people of the modern world, can learn, live and practice similarly, both as individuals and as a community.

Embroideries and designs from the Paracas culture of Peru are ancient, dating from more than 3,000 BC, and are both spiritual and sacred. Furthermore, the Paracas stitch is similarly a sacred stitch. In modern times, it is a stitch widely used around the world, using the name of “Stem Stitch”. Thanks to Border Crossings with this historic project in which we have re-created a Paracas burial mantle, we may say that more embroiderers now know, respect and honour the true name, origins and proper use of “The Paracas Stitch”.

We hope that the completed, recreated Embroidery Mantle will serve to inspire a new generation, so that the legacy of the Paracas people will never die. For myself, both as a Paracas embroidery practitioner and as an artist, I take now the opportunity to invite the British Museum to put on permanent display their Paracas collection, so that more people in modern times can easily access and learn what an incredible and unique heritage and legacy they left us, an Indigenous culture interwoven in the universal language of hand embroidery and textiles.

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Left: Paracas embroidered god-like figure © The Trustees of the British Museum Above: Small pieces of a Paracas mantle. Photo: Michael Walling 25

JOSÉ NAVARRO - Quechua THE PUPPETS

The puppet characters are based on the PreHispanic cultures of Peru, namely, the tradition of Chancay dolls, with elements of Paracas, Tiwanaku and Chavin cultural motifs, as a testimony to my own ancient roots. Growing up in the Peruvian highlands and within the traditions, I’ve always felt connected to the different ancient and modern Peruvian cultures. My own practice in the arts broadly reflects that, as I touch upon the legacy of my ancestors. Some of my performances, like this one, reference these rich and varied cultural heritages.

Border Crossings made it possible to explore the process of ancient making traditions with elements of contemporary features. This was a unique opportunity to create an exciting mix, as well as collaborate with a group of other practitioners. The blending of the ancient traditions with contemporary elements is a path to continuing tradition today. Of course, cultural heritage can not be recreated exactly as it was back then; a lot of the materials and ancient technologies are no longer fully accessible. So, the work we have done to create these puppets strikes a balance between different processes and is itself an amalgamation of different practices from different times.

Working with a group of volunteers has been an opportunity to share heritage and puppetry making procedures.

Everyone contributed with their own ideas and brought their own skills to enrich the puppets we made. A big thanks to Border Crossings for making this possible.

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Above: Gustavo working on the human puppet. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara Left Above: José Navarro working on the head of the condor puppet. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara Left Below: Andean dolls © The Trustees of the British Museum 27

Jessica Mirella Luong and dancers in a workshop in April. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

JESSICA MIRELLA LUONG - Quechua In Andean communities, these expressions come out very naturally.

I am so grateful to Border Crossings, especially Michael and Lucy for asking me to be part of this amazing project.

It’s been a great experience getting to know each other, working with all dancers and co-creating. I loved seeing their group work during the initial part of the project. It’s been a pleasure working with Maria and Kelsey.

I enjoyed the creativity and fusion involved with such beautiful music from the Baroque era. For example the gradual change of a step from an upright position to working with the land. Another example, creating a ceremonial bowl with the unity of both arms and hands.

There is also the collective weaving choreography and more.

One of the challenges for me has been the application of some of the traditional steps to Baroque music. The traditional steps follow a particular rhythm, the rhythm is linked to the cultural expression, messages, stories, feelings, environment, reality, context, etc. of the community. Having said that, I love how we incorporated the use of the “chaquillacta” (Andean footplough), which involves putting pressure of the foot in digging up the soil, the “expressions” of the hard labour involved, the tender love and care when handling the seeds and chaquillactas.

I enjoyed stepping out of the dance and seeing how it develops; thinking about when, where and how we could apply a specific step and choreography.

It was heart-warming to view the British Museum objects together. It was interesting to listen to each other’s comments and questions. I selected some objects from Peru and Colombia with the intention of informing and inspiring our work.

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The objects were: complex geometric designs – with the intention that this could also inspire our choreographies.

• An engraved gourd, which features llamas, a panpipe player and people making pottery. This object caught my eye because it seemed to me it was telling us a story about ancient pottery and how people dress, work and interact with each other. It shows how music was integrated into their everyday work.

• An Inca cloak. During our workshops, we talked about incorporating traditional and creative movements using the Andean mantas. I thought this cloak illustrated geometric and zoomorpic designs, which could also inspire our work.

• A Chibcha gold pectoral. I thought this object could illustrate and stimulate some discussions about ancient spirituality and connection with the cosmos.

• A brooch dance costume, which is used for fastening the cloak or manta. I thought the posture of the dancer holding a handkerchief and wearing boots represents a modern style of Andean dance from central Peru. The skirt and the cloak are decorated with flowers.

• A Shipibo-Conibo pot, I thought it would be interesting to talk about the different uses of this pot as well as begin to discuss its

I enjoyed viewing all the objects. The Paracas textiles were amazing! The detail, colours and intricate work overall looked incredibly advanced.

Through the British Museum visits, I learnt more about our cultural legacy; I felt inspired, connected and emotionally touched by the close and enduring presence of such beautiful, delicate and complex pieces of art.

To me, the intensity of love, care, belief and dedication is sealed in the objects.

My admiration for our ancestors keeps on growing and to be able to see their legacy is the experience of a lifetime!

Detail of the engraved gourd. Photo: Jessica Mirella Luong 29

MARIA DA LUZ GHOUMRASSI I am one of the choreographers for THE MOUTH OF THE GODS, working alongside Jessica Mirella Luong.

As a performer and researcher, I draw from my knowledge of classical ballet, Baroque/Early dance, contemporary dance, and dances from the African Diaspora to explore intercultural theatre and education.

I am excited when I can use my Art to explore stories and themes relevant to our daily lives.

Although my cultural background does not come from Latin America or Spain, my people, the Cape Verdeans, were affected by the Portuguese colonisation.

Being part of this project gives me an opportunity to look at colonisation from another perspective: the events that occurred in the Americas. Hearing the voices of Indigenous peoples makes me feel closer to my people’s history.

The Genocide of Peoples from the Americas, one of the greatest, if not the greatest, holocausts committed in the name of Religion, is rarely spoken about or even acknowledged.

I am honoured to have worked alongside a talented and generous team of artists to develop this work. It has been enriching, emotional and soul-searching.

This History is My History is Your History is Our Human History!

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Maria at the community dance workshop at IRMO. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

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HISTORICAL NOTES THE VALLADOLID DEBATE

THE VALLADOLID DEBATE In 1550, in response to misgivings felt by the Emperor Charles V about his dominions in the Americas, a panel of theologians and officials was convened in Valladolid to hear arguments for and against the subjugation of Indigenous people. The two disputants were humanist scholar Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda and Dominican friar Bartolomé de las Casas. Both agreed that Christian evangelism was the aim of European incursions overseas: the question was about the means through which they could achieve this end.

Friar Bartolomé de las Casas

TÚPAC AMARU II

Túpac Amaru II

In 1781, the Spanish authorities in Cuzco executed José Gabriel Condorcanqui Noguera, also known as Túpac Amaru, in a particularly brutal way. Tracing his ancestry to the last Inca emperor, Túpac Amaru I, José Gabriel called for the abolition of policies oppressing the Indigenous population. His wife Micaela Bastidas was joint leader of the rebellion, but she was not able to persuade Túpac to turn his troops on other Indigenous people, and it was this that finally led to their defeat.

His final promise, “I will return and I will be millions”, has led to Túpac’s name and image being widely evoked by contemporary freedom fighters and Indigenous activists.

Recent protests in Peru. Photo: Public domain

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Extinction Rebellion Protest, Oxford Circus.

Photo: Vladimir Morozov

BERTA CÁCERES Berta Cáceres was an Honduran environmental activist, and a leader of the Indigenous Lenca people. In 2015, she was awarded the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize for “a grassroots campaign that successfully pressured the world’s largest dam builder to pull out of the Agua Zarca Dam.” In 2016, she was assassinated in her own house by armed men.

Various people have been arrested in connection with the murder, several of whom were linked to the US-trained elite military corps.

In April 2020, Extinction Rebellion placed a large pink boat in Oxford Circus. Its name was Berta Cáceres.

Berta Cáceres. Photo: UN Environment, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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FROM THE VOLUNTEERS MIA CLARKE - Embroidering the Paracas Mantle

It has been an absolute pleasure to volunteer on this Paracas Mantle, an intriguing outcome of a project I was completely new to, but which has given me potential to work above and beyond my existing knowledge. What’s so special about the piece is that it’s been hand stitched in different ways to form a collaborative design. The figure linked to the MOUTH OF THE GODS shown in different colours. The scale of the mantle shows that it is extraordinary and precious to admire as to how it has been embroidered carefully.

This was planned out and worked very smoothly. Meeting the volunteers and organisers and knowing more about the project supported me in embracing the moment and knowing that this was something I had an interest in.

The MOUTH OF THE GODS symbols were the main attraction towards the piece; it represents a historic figure of the mantle shown in a flying position.

It referred to God’s revelation to and distance from humankind.

Mia Clarke at Festival Andino. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

Attending the drop-in sessions on progressing with the mantle has grown my confidence but also being able to practise in another setting has made my standard in embroidery more successful. My use of stitching had become very fluent as I went working in different corners and working on angles of the mantle with string. I believed that designing a plan for which directions and parts I wanted to approach got me going on the whole design. I would recommend it to anyone that has a passion for embroidery. It was a joy to do and I would be open to doing something like this again.

Since the very start I have loved every minute. This makes me want to come back every time as I am learning new techniques of stitching on the front and back. I have been able to gain the skills I want in the project and this is because the support around the group has been very efficient. This has given me knowledge of embroidery work as I had not much experience.

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TESSA CRICHTON-MILLER - Embroidering the Paracas Mantle

I joined the Paracas Mantle project as I’m a keen embroiderer and I was interested in what the experience of working on something communal rather than individual would be like.

It was fascinating discovering what a mantle was and learning about the Paracas culture and how they made these textiles for burying their dead.

We were lucky enough to go to the British Museum store where we examined some pieces of a mantle close up. It made the project even more meaningful to think that we were creating something related to such an ancient textile imbued with symbolism and meanings which we can only guess at.

Our mantle is an expression of trying to honour and celebrate the Paracas culture and bring it to a wider audience. It was so exciting to discover what the piece would entail - the image, the stitches, the colours and the SIZE! The more the piece develops, the more it comes to life! It has been wonderful working with so many talented stitchers and supporting each other on this unique journey. It’s been a very enriching project to be part of.

Tessa Crichton-Miller stitching the Paracas mantle.

Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

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FROM THE VOLUNTEERS ROXANA M SOLIS - Peruvian/British - Dancing in THE MOUTH OF THE GODS

Dance came into my life as a means of healing and reflection, and over time it has become a way for me to view myself with love and embrace my diverse identity. Through the art of dance, I connect with my Spanish, African, Indigenous, and Japanese roots.

Being part of the core dance group in The MOUTH OF THE GODS project allows me to explore and reflect deeply on my Indigenous roots, connecting meaningfully with the beliefs and traditions of Andean cosmovision.

My mother taught me that in Andean cosmovision, the world of the living, the place where we live, and our ancestors are profoundly interconnected. Our environment, such as the earth, the sun, and nature, is alive, and even the dead are considered spirits, as they are present among us and coexist with humans in the real world.

For example, in the core dance group, there was a scene where I danced with Camilo and Rosita, celebrating the preparation of an ancestral drink, “Masato”. That experience reminded me of my mother preparing another ancestral drink, “Chicha de Jora,”(a fermented corn beverage made from jora corn) to commemorate the anniversary of a beloved uncle’s passing. In that scene, my mother and my aunts were in the kitchen preparing the traditional drink and my uncle’s Roxana and Susana in rehearsals. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara 36

favourite food as an offering, so that his spirit could be present and enjoy the celebration with his loved ones gathered in community.

During the celebration, we were all sitting in a circle, with the food and drink at the centre. My mother, speaking in Quechua, began the offering to my uncle’s spirit, telling him that all his loved ones were present to share this offering with him. It was then that my mother took the jug of chicha de jora, poured a sip onto the earth as a symbolic act of giving drink to Pachamama (The Earth) and then raised the jug upwards as a gesture of reverence towards Apu Sol and nature, showing deep gratitude for the protection, wellbeing, and life we had all received from them, before finishing with a request for my uncle’s spirit to continue protecting and caring for us.

Camilo and Edith in rehearsals.

Photo: John Cobb

CAMILO INTI SOLER CAICEDO - Dancing in THE MOUTH OF THE GODS

We often think that the past is known, and the future is unknown, yet having grown up in the Andes taught me that the past is still a place full of discovery. There are so many things about what happened in the Americas in the last 500 years we still do not know anything about and, in the absence of written records, dance and music are great sources of insight. It was a beautiful experience for me to be part of THE MOUTH OF THE GODS as a journey to discover more of that past and bring it to the audiences of London, so the good and bad memories of what happened can, perhaps, also help us think a bit more about what we want for our shared future as humanity.

The art of dance allows me to keep these memories and family traditions alive, which may not always be present but help me reflect on my diverse and sometimes challenging identity, just as the world I live in is.

Finally, dance is my form of resistance; it gives me a sense of freedom that helps me recognise my limits, and it is also a way for me to reinvent myself and embrace life while connecting with others and within wider communities.

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HERITAGE PARTNERSHIPS MIMI WAITZMAN

A single example demonstrates the scale of the revelations. A clay instrument, previously described as a Peruvian Moche ‘rattle’, was shown instead to be a sophisticated, doubleended whistle. Its pair of cat heads, one painted dark red and the other white, were not randomly coloured, but symbolised the principle of coexisting dualities in life – light-dark.

In addition, one cat’s mouth was open while the other’s was closed, joining further dualities: sound-silence, speaking-listening. The cat, itself, is a creature often chosen to represent the earth, distinguished from the condor representing the sky, and the snake, the underworld. The decoration, consisting of pairs and trios of elongated ovals joined at a waist, which had been regarded as ‘dots’ were, we learned, quite likely representations of a food staple: the peanut.

- Senior Curator of Musical Collections and Cultures, Horniman Museum and Gardens

As a partner on THE MOUTH OF THE GODS, the Horniman Museum has been excited to open dialogues around its musical instrument collection, helping the musicians involved in this project to explore the original performance contexts of the pieces and to understand the complex interactions between baroque and Indigenous instruments.

The global musical instrument collection is a wide river fed from many diverse, and sometimes unexpected, tributaries. Various currents brought us its Latin American objects: colonial exploration and exploitation, touristic dazzle, random fancy, religious fervour, and the impulse towards academic ordering. Given this background, it is easy to see that a full understanding of these items requires many perspectives.

Suddenly, a seemingly ordinary object teemed with vivid stories that animated aspects of an ancient culture: its art, aesthetic ideals, technology, everyday life, and even its organising philosophy. This process was replicated throughout day with eight selected objects, reminding us of the countless ways in which musical instruments can speak to us once their stories are liberated. In bringing us all together, the Border Crossings project initiated a new and fruitful relationship that not only enriches everyone now, but also audiences of the future.

The Curators of the Horniman’s Musical Collections and Cultures section therefore felt very privileged to be able to learn from the first-hand experience, grassroots knowledge and academic expertise that two visitors from the project recently brought to our Study Collections. Johnny Rodriguez and Robert Gutierrez, in examining eight Indigenous items, helped us to ‘see’ them, as if for the first time.

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(From Left) Saava Benjamin Busenze, Johnny Rodriguez, Robert Gutierrez and Mimi Waitzman at Horniman Museum stores.

Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

JOHNNY FIGUEROA RODRIGUEZ

were able to create some awareness of who we were, what we have done and what we are about to be.

- Exploring musical heritage at the Horniman Museum

Having never been to the Horniman Museum’s store before, I found it fascinating to be so close to all of the historic items. Just imagining that all of those instruments were one time used on an everyday basis or made for special occasions and celebrations.

Being inside the museum’s store is like entering a sacred place - full of respect and humbleness, but at the same time there is a sense of melancholy. I was transported back in time, to times that I never was, but yet, seem all too familiar to the places where I grew up. I also felt angry that because of greed a lot of the Indigenous people were exterminated by the so-called “civilised” society. The museum is a good place to learn and, hopefully, we

Although most of the objects seemed familiar, the ceramics had a resemblance to ones I had known in my childhood: they might not have been made with the similar intention, but were probably made with similar techniques. They evidence activities that people still practise in Peru, especially fishing, working in the land, etc.

The conversations we had with Mimi and Saava were very enlightening and it was a privilege to be surrounded by such special and historic items. It reminded me of my childhood in Peru and the history and cultural heritage I learned from my ancestors.

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HERITAGE PARTNERSHIPS As a child I remember my grandmother from my dad’s side, Juana, from La Cuesta, a village near Trujillo in the north of Peru. All of her saucepans were made of clay and often made by my granddad. The musical instruments, like the Antara from the Viru culture, transported me to when I used to shepherd goats and sheep. I would look for anything to make sounds and keep me company, like a reed whistle or a plant leaf (which if you put it in between your lips, with practice, you can make it sound like a clarinet or mouth organ). It is quite lonely and often scary in the mountains when you are a child. Musical instruments were very important in ancient cultures, they were used for various ceremonies, rituals, festivities and everyday for keeping people company and building communities.

Antara, an Indigenous instrument © The Trustees of the British Museum

My favourite memory is waking up around 6am to him playing some music, having breakfast and taking the herd to the potrero. Then going to the farm where the orchard was and working alongside him. When he took a break, he would pick up his bag with coca leaves and start choosing the best one to chew. For me, he would find the best apple. Sitting next to him, although he was quite reserved, he would talk about what time it was just by looking at the sun; how the moon affects the crops; when it is going to rain; and he would talk about some other things related to nature.

I think our ancestors were amazing people, who left us with so much richness culturally. So much to be proud of and learn: the architecture, the art, the harmonious way of living with nature. We call it history, but it is still alive and there. We are taking it all for granted.

Cultural heritage for me is alive. It is with me every day. How I am as a person and to others, how I promote my culture around the world, how I play my instruments and transmit our universal message that we are here and not just a history - all of this cultural heritage is a part of me. I am very proud that I am from Peru and practise some of the traditions that have been passed through generations, especially music and dances.

I was lucky enough to spend lots of time with my grandad, Urbano. He was a farmer, who worked the land and made most of his own things. A very proud man from the mountains, he had a beautiful orchard full of fruits, potato fields, maize and all of the other products. He was a very good musician and often built his own instruments.

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Johnny Rodriguez and Robert Gutierrez in the Horniman stores. Photo: Michael Walling

ROBERT GUTIERREZ is a testament to the resilience of Andean people. Comparing the European stringed instruments such as the theorbo and baroque guitar to early South American charangos and guitarillos highlights how Andean people adopted European influences while keeping alive the essence of their Andean identity. These instruments along with the pinkillu (cane flute) and caja (Andean goat skin drum) are closely tied to changes of agricultural seasons, presenting a deep understanding of the interdependence between people and nature.

Visiting the collections at the Horniman Museum was a fascinating experience.

Seeing and discussing the objects is a striking reminder of how Andean Cosmovision is deeply present in the lives of our people, in our music and dances, but also in everyday objects such as pots and dolls. While these objects come from vastly distant regions and time periods, they demonstrate a shared understanding of the world across all Andean peoples, from pre-colonial times to the present day.

Andean traditions have always been closely tied to the natural world. Since the earliest times, pre-Columbian whistles and rattles like those in the Museum closely imitate the sound of birds and rain. While colonisation of the Americas has suppressed much of our culture, seeing how many of these traditions are still alive today

Seeing the projects run by Border Crossing and Horniman curators Mimi and Saava Benjamin’s curious interest in understanding these objects gives me hope that despite a long colonial history, Indigenous peoples and values still have a strong place in this modern, ever-changing world.

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HERITAGE PARTNERSHIPS DANNY ZBOROVER - Curator and Head of the Americas Section, British Museum

THE MOUTH OF THE GODS immediately grabbed my attention when it was first brought to us by Michael Walling of Border Crossings.

The notion of drawing artistic inspiration from the British Museum’s textile collection of the Paracas civilization, considered one of the most innovative in the ancient Andes during the first millennium BCE, was exciting in itself. But then, applying this knowledge towards the creation of an embroidered scenic piece for a theatrical performance accompanied with music written by an anonymous Indigenous composer(!), is truly inspirational and precisely the type of community-led project that we strive to promote through our Santo Domingo Centre of Excellence for Latin American Research.

Labyrinth pot (Nazca). Photo: Jessica Mirella Luong

So excited we were by this collaboration, that the involved artists and community members were the first ever visitors we hosted at the Museum’s new storage facilities where these textiles are kept. Being able to spend a fascinating day together and learn from their technical expertise and emotional reaction to the pieces was truly gratifying, and even more so knowing that this will be now faithfully transmitted to the public through this powerful performance.

Detail of engraved gourd. Photo: Jessica Mirella Luong

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Paracas cloth. © The Trustees of the British Museum

Engraved gourd. © The Trustees of the British Museum

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THINGS I CAN’T EVEN IMAGINE YET - Kelsey Yuhara - Project Manager During the interview for this role, and after speaking about challenges on a previous heritage project I had managed, I remember Michael asking me: “So why do you want to keep doing this type of work?” My response was, and this is still true today, “because I always learn so much on these projects. Not just about the job, but about the world, about different cultures, about different perspectives, and about things I can’t even imagine yet.”

Supporting the artists and gathering the community who, in each small way, like a tiny Paracas stem stitch, and big way, like the magnificent condor puppet, have come together to make THE MOUTH OF THE GODS, has been an incredible experience. The magic of this kind of work is in the connections I can see happen during this project: like a collaboration between two core dancers who created their own work and performed it elsewhere in London; like an embroidery Day of the Dead party organised at a stitcher’s home; like Indigenous musicians in conversation with Horniman Museum curators to share their expertise and their stories; and the connections that will ripple outward and have yet to be seen.

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Volunteers stitching shaman figures on the Paracas mantle. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara

I’ve understood the power and meaning of the workshops and events we’ve organised over the past nine months because so many volunteers would not take part in just one strand. We had dancers wanting to try their hand at embroidery, puppet makers wanting to try dance, two design graduates who have taken part in the community textile, embroidery, puppet making and design for the stage and performance, and a choreographer who volunteered as a puppet maker. This rare synergy among all the threads of the project has been beautiful to witness as they all weave together to create this performance. I really hope that you enjoy the fruits of everyone’s talents, energy, research, patience, and countless hours of enjoyable (but also serious and hard) work.

In my own life and travels, I’ve lived or travelled across Europe, Asia, and Africa. I was born and raised in California and South America is close by comparison. Despite having a few opportunities over the years to visit, I never did. If I believed in fate, which maybe I sometimes do, I think I was waiting for this project to be a part of my life. I know when I do make the journey, it will be so much richer than it ever could have been before.

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ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES John Apps (Children’s Music Coach) began vocal training with Robert Bickerstaff in 1986 following a successful audition to the Australian Opera Company at the age of eleven. He performed at the Sydney Opera House in LA BOHEME, BORIS GODUNOV, TOSCA and was understudy in THE MAGIC FLUTE. In 1998 he was awarded the Sydney De Vries Scholarship to Sydney University Conservatorium of Music, completing a Diploma of Opera. With repetiteur John Martin, he won numerous Australian vocal eisteddfods and then completed a Bachelor of Music at the University of NSW, majoring in Vocal Performance. Other experience includes Kevin Jacobsen Productions (Arena Opera: TURANDOT), Collegium Choir and Burgundian Consort (UNSW), Coro Innominata, Sydney Youth Opera, Hogarth Singers and resident cantor at numerous churches. John provides private student training in vocal performance and music.

loft and likes nothing better than revealing a roll of black and white film from the developing tank.

Florencia Cordeu (Assistant Director) is a Theatre Maker, Movement Teacher and actor of Latin American heritage. She was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and grew up in Santiago, Chile, where she attended Universidad Católica de Chile’s Acting training before moving to London. She has a BA Hons in Acting from Rose Bruford College and a MA in Training Actors in Movement from GSMD. She has taught Laban Technique, Expressive Movement and Tango dancing at Rose Bruford College, GSMD and Arts Ed. As a performer she wrote her own solo show AUTOREVERSE for a run at BAC, directed by Omar Elerian. She is working on a film version of her solo show using Super 8 archival material belonging to her family. She toured Norway with Ōta Shōgo’s THE WATER STATION Nordland Teater’s production, directed by Phillip Zarilli and more recently toured Ireland and UK with MURDER TRIAL TONIGHT

by Tigerslane Studios. As a voice artist: Narration of The POPOL VUH (ancient text of the Mayan mythology and culture) for the Forum BBC World Service. She is delighted to be a part of the production of MOUTH OF THE GODS as a member of Latinx Actor UK to support and promote Latin American history and culture in London.

John Cobb (Filmmaker and Photographer) Having studied Social Anthropology at university, John started his career as a press photographer, working for local newspapers in York and then national newspapers in London. Tiring of chasing politicians and celebrities, he decided to focus on his areas of interest: the Third Sector, education and the environment. Assignments for HelpAge International led him to cover the 2004 Tsunami in India and the aftermath of a volcanic eruption in the Democratic Republic of Congo, whilst actions for Greenpeace included stopping coal trains, breaking into the London Oil Exchange and highlighting over-fishing aboard the Esperanza. Over the past decade John has moved into film and set up www.goldenfrogfilms.com. Key clients include UCL, LSE, WWF and Save the Children. Current projects include promoting the new BA Arts and Humanities programmes on the UCL East Campus and MSc programmes for the Department of International Development at the LSE.

Lucy Dunkerley (Associate Director) has led the Community, Participation and Education work of Border Crossings since 2012. She creates and delivers a programme designed to complement the artistic work. She has delivered workshops in China, Turkey, Malta, Ireland and the UK. Since 2016, Lucy has particularly worked with young refugees and minority women’s projects, exploring and developing working methodologies that honour cultural diversity and enable participation on a level playing field. She has created large scale education and community projects for the ORIGINS Festival, working with a range of diverse volunteers, community groups, schools, and refugees.

Other Projects have included BOTANY BAY and POCAHONTAS AND AFTER. Lucy

John’s work with Border Crossings include the ORIGINS Festivals, HIDDEN HISTORIES and the award winning POCAHONTAS AND AFTER photographic project, exhibited at Syon House. He still has a darkroom in the 46

Directed UNDER THE WHALEBACK (2019) as a co-production with Et Nordfriisk Teooter (The North Frisian Theatre), performed in Friesian and subtitled in German. Lucy was Outreach Worker at the Royal Court 2000-2008, working in the Young Writers Programme as part of the Court’s mission to develop the next generation of playwrights.

Lucy is also Chair of Audiovisability, a Deafled music charity, ensuring that all deaf people have access to music and can fulfil their musical dream.

her ancestral history through the eyes of a woman living in contemporary Britain.

Maria da Luz uses her practice as a way to reconcile separate aspects of her identity as a woman of mixed heritage, through ongoing performances and workshops.

Her current work is increasingly aligning with Health and Wellbeing, Inclusion and Empowerment through the arts.

She currently works with various dance organisations and diverse community groups including young children and families, older people, women groups and people with physical and mental difficulties.

As Movement Director, Maria da Luz has worked for TV, Opera and Theatre including working with Border Crossings, the BBC, and music videos.

Fábio Fernandez (Guitar / theorbo) is a Portuguese classical guitarist and lutenist based in London. Winner of 2nd Prize at the 21st Ivor Mairants Guitar Award in 2021 and 3rd Prize at the Concorso di Chitarra “Gaetano Marziali” in 2021, Fábio is a versatile and confident performer. Recent highlights include recitals at the Barbican Centre, St. James’s Church Piccadilly, Milton Court Concert Hall, The English Music Festival, and a solo performance with Orquestra Con Spirito in Portugal.

Fábio moved to London in 2014 to study at the prestigious Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where he completed both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees under the guidance of Robert Brightmore, before being invited to be a Junior Fellow there in 2020-2021. Recently, he was offered to join the internationally acclaimed Máster Guitarra Alicante programme in Spain, graduating cum laude in recognition of his achievements. Since 2015, Fábio has studied lute and theorbo with David Miller.

He has performed alongside members of the Academy of Ancient Music at the 2019 Deal Festival and participated in the 2019 London Handel Festival. He was also invited

by Dame Emma Kirkby to join her project Dowland Works.

Maria da Luz is honoured to be working on THE MOUTH OF THE GODS with such an illustrious ensemble of artists sharing an eminent message in eminent times.

Pablo Tejedor-Gutiérrez (Cello) is a wellknown cello and gamba player specialising in historical performance. He was awarded the 2022 British Spanish Society Arts Award and placed third in the 2023 Spanish National Early Music Competition. He has studied with Christophe Coin, Jaap Ter Linden, Bruno Cocset, Aldo Mata, David Pia, Sara Mingardo, Antonio Florio, Lucia Swarts, Jonathan Manson, and Kristin von der Goltz in Spain, Switzerland, and the UK. The Société des Amis du Conservatoire de Genève, The Wood, Macfarlane Walker, Mackaness Trusts, and the Wilsdorf Foundation all provided funding for his education.

Pablo has a busy career performing internationally at iconic locations such as the Teatro Real in Madrid, the Muziekgebouw in Amsterdam, and the Victoria Hall in Geneva. Radio Télévision Suisse, Radio Catalunya, and the BBC3 have all aired his performances, and he has performed with renowned musicians such as William Christie, Philippe Herreweghe, Enrico Onofri, Ophélie Gaillard, Martin Gester, Rachel Podger, and Leonardo García Alarcón.

Maria da Luz Ghoumrassi (Choreographer) is a performer, educator and movement director based in London. Born in Portugal of Cape Verdean descent, she explores postcolonial history and its impact on nature, culture and identity. Her artistic practice incorporates dance and movement with aspects of visual arts, language, singing and storytelling integrating elements of 47

ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES Pablo plays historically informed, imaginative bass lines as the principal cello in a variety of ensembles that specialise in Baroque and Romantic repertoire, such as Academia Montis Regalis, Le Parlement de Musique, or Holland Baroque. Additionally, he has given numerous solo recitals in the Horniman Museum, St. John Smith Square, St. James Piccadilly, and the Holywell Room.

In his spare time, Pablo teaches at various music schools, such as the University of Oxford or the Royal College of Music, and researches and presents publications on cultural history subjects.

POWER, SUBURBAN SHOOTOUT, THE VET, SHOOTING STARS IN AUGUST and THE HARPIST. Radio: GILBERT WITHOUT SULLIVAN (BBC), DOCTOR WHO (Big Finish) Bella Lane (Master Embroiderer and Designer) was born in a remote village at the mouth of the River Napo in Peru, and grew up immersed in the Amazonian forest.

From an early age, she honed her sewing skills, becoming proficient by six.

A Master embroiderer, she went on to train at the Royal School of Needlework in Hampton Court Palace. Graduating in 2009, Bella was recognised by the RSN with the award of several prizes, and by admission to two Livery Companies. She has taught hand embroidery skills all over the globe and is a world embroidery stitch collector. Recent collaborations include The V&A, British Museum and the Guildhall Art Gallery.

Tim Hudson (Cardinal Inquisitor, Executioner, Warner) is delighted to be renewing his association with Border Crossings, having appeared in TWELFTH NIGHT (Leicester Haymarket Studio/ Mauritius) and BULLIE’S HOUSE (Riverside Studios).

Outside of stitching, Bella is involved in acting and puppetry projects.

Theatre: Winston Churchill in THE LION & THE UNICORN (Crime and Comedy Theatre Company national tour), Boris Johnson in DOM (Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh/Theatre Royal, Windsor/The Other Palace Studio/ White Bear), THE COMEDY OF ERRORS and MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (Guildford Shakespeare Company), BY JEEVES (Really Useful Group), SLEUTH (Sheringham), WHO’S THE DADDY? (King’s Head), Toad in THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS (West End), MERCHANT OF VENICE, KING LEAR, COLUMBUS and THE DISCOVERY OF JAPAN, A WOMAN KILLED WITH KINDNESS, HAMLET and ION (all for the RSC), WEST SIDE STORY (West End/No 1 Tour), THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST (Worcester Swan), RICHARD III (Ludlow Festival), SIR THOMAS MORE (Shaw Theatre), THE FORSYTE SAGA (Salisbury Playhouse), Dame, Ugly Sister, Baron, Villain in 23 pantomimes.

Jessica Mirella Luong (Choreographer) is from Lima, Peru. The fourth of five children, she started to develop a taste for dancing from an early age. Her mother Irene Jara was a social worker and community leader from Cajamarca. Her grandfather Santiago Jara was a miner and artisan from La Libertad, Huamachuco near Marcahuamachuco, 400 AD Wari Culture.

Her first dance performance was at primary school, thanks to the encouragement of Benjamin Neira, her primary school teacher from Puno. Her mother helped find shelter, food and water for refugees from Bolivia. Jessica feels fortunate to have been exposed to Bolivian music from a young age.

At 15, she moved to London, where she co-founded the long-standing group, Baila Peru. Jessica’s memories of dancing with local people at traditional festivals in the highlands of Peru have inspired her artistic performance with the Peruvian community at large carnivals in London and Berlin. She has performed with the group at events at the British Museum, the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge, Tate Modern, V&A, Somerset House, and Border Crossings.

Film and TV: BONHOEFFER (due out in cinemas November 2024), ROYAL AUTOPSY (playing King George IV), SKY FORCE, FATHER BROWN, GOD’S SPY, THE BALLAD OF RENEGADE NELL, DOCTOR WHO, DE GAULLE, SARDAR UDHAM, A VERY ENGLISH SCANDAL, IN THE CLOUD, FATHER FIGURE, DOCTORS, EASTENDERS, MY FAMILY, THE BILL, M.I.T., DR. WILLOUGHBY, ABSOLUTE 48

Susana Millán (Assistant Director) is a Spanish actor, emerging director and PhD student based in London. She started her PhD project, A (Female) Actor’s Work: A Twenty-first Century Feminist Adaptation of Stanislavsky’s System, at Royal Holloway University of London in September 2022 on a part-time basis. The project analyses the female actor’s experience when applying Stanislavsky’s rehearsal processes, adapts Stanislavsky’s techniques so they can be used to challenge the misogyny of characters in canonical plays and enables female actors to prioritise their emotional well-being when embodying roles that endure oppression in both canonical and contemporary feminist texts. Susana’s PhD project builds on the work that she developed for her MA dissertation by practice (2019) for which she devised and starred in BREAKING THE CYCLE, a feminist auto-ethnographic play about intergenerational trauma. Using a feminist approach, she merged Frantic Assembly’s devising approach and Stanislavsky’s Active Analysis to develop a methodology that culminated in a performance that combined naturalistic acting, stylised realism, and physical theatre. Her second devised play, PLACES, was a part of Project on a Bus mentorship program. PLACES is a onewoman show that explores her experience as a migrant woman in the UK, and the themes of friendship, loss, and identity.

Susana performed PLACES at UEL and London’s Pen Theatre.

vision with practical skills to enhance theatrical experiences.

Rafael Montero (Tenor) is the founder of EL PARNASO HYSPANO, an international chamber group dedicated to the performance of early Hispanic music.

Rafael’s heritage is Indigenous and Spanish, and he has spoken Quechua since he was a child. He specialises in Renaissance Spanish and South American Baroque music and also in Romantic and contemporary chamber music from Hispanic America and Spain.

He studied singing at the Conservatorio Nacional de Cordoba, Argentina, and then early and chamber music at the Conservatoire de Musique de Neuchâtel, Switzerland.

With fortepianist Carole Cerasi he has made the first recordings of the songs of South America’s pre-eminent classical composer, Pedro Ximénez Abril y Tirado. In July 2022 he sang the title role in the UK premiére of Domenico Zipoli’s SAN IGNACIO DE LOYOLA, a baroque opera written for Indigenous people from whom he is descended. In 2023, he sang in the first UK performance of the VESPERS OF CORPUS CHRISTI by Pedro Ximénez Abril y Tirado, in a new Urtext edition which he commissioned. In 2024 he brought to the National Centre for Early Music in York the first UK concert performance of the Indigenous Baroque Opera, SAN FRANCISCO XAVIER. In 2020 he received a prize from Art Foundation NRW for a musical project entitled VERÄNDERUNGEN (Transformation) combining Medieval Spanish Works with newly commissioned contemporary music.

He has acted as musical advisor to baroque groups in Germany, including Concerto Koeln.

Valentina Miranda (Design Team) is a Brazilian performance designer and multidisciplinary artist with a rich background shaped by her experiences in various countries. A graduate of The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, she specialises in devised methods and community projects. Valentina is dedicated to making her designs as sustainable as possible. Recently, she designed a segment for the Boomtown Festival and contributed to the UK student exhibit at the Prague Quadrennial 2023 as part of the creative team. She is passionate not just about creating costumes, set pieces, and props, but also making them, merging her creative

Nick Moran (Lighting Designer) is a Lighting Designer and Educator working in London.

His lighting work ranges from large scale opera and concerts to fringe theatre and exhibitions, across the UK, Europe, Australia and North America. He teaches production and design at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, where he leads the Production Technologies and Stage 49

ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES José Navarro (Master Puppeteer and Puppet Design) is an Andean Quechua performance artist who trained in Mime with Juan Arcos, graduated in Art at Peru’s National University of San Marcos in Lima, and holds an MA in Theatre Practice ‘Puppetry and Object Theatre’ from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. José has toured his own productions at numerous International Festivals and is a member of the British Puppet Guild.

Management undergraduate programme.

He is also the author of three textbooks, including PERFORMANCE LIGHTING DESIGN and THE RIGHT LIGHT. Nick is proud of his long association with Border Crossings, having been lighting designer for BULLIE’S HOUSE, THE DILEMMA OF A GHOST, REORIENTATIONS, CONSUMED, and WHEN NOBODY RETURNS. Nick is assisted in his role on this production by two students from The Central School, William Gibbs and Felix Weis.

Edith Ramos Guerra (Soprano) is an Indigenous singer of traditional music, born in the city of Ayaviri, Puno. She studied singing in Cusco and at the National Conservatory of Music in Lima. She is a student of traditional mestizo and peasant Quechua and Aymara Andean music.

Matthew Morley (Music Director) With a repertoire that ranges from John Adams to Frank Zappa, Matthew is one of the UK’s most experienced and sought-after chorus-masters. Following organ and harpsichord studies at the Royal Academy of Music, Matthew continued his love of accompanying and working with singers with a post-graduate scholarship to study piano accompaniment – he won all the Academy’s accompaniment prizes, and was awarded an MMus and CertRAM in Performance Studies. He joined the music staff at Glyndebourne, and then English National Opera, where he prepared the ENO Chorus for many of its iconic productions, and was Music Director for ENO Baylis’s ground-breaking community project, KNOW THE SHOW. He now works with choruses, opera companies and festivals across Europe including South Bank Centre’s Voicelab, Greek National Opera, Opera Holland Park, Opera North, Buxton International Festival, The Grange Festival and The Netherlands Nationale Reisopera.

He has collaborated with and assisted conductors and composers including Richard Farnes, Sir Mark Elder, Oleg Caetani, Vladimir Jurowski, Martyn Brabbins, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Stephen Barlow, David Parry and John Adams. As a regular guest chorusmaster for the BBC Singers, projects have included BBC Prom performances of John Adam’s NIXON IN CHINA, Poulenc’s STABAT MATER, the BBCSO’s recording and Radio 3 broadcast of Adam’s DR ATOMIC and the recording of Arthur Sullivan’s HADDON HALL. For over thirty years he has been the Organist of St Bride’s Church, Fleet Street – also known as the journalists’ church.

She has worked in the church of the Company of Jesus and in the cathedral of Cusco performing traditional repertoire of native Quechua Catholic religious songs, repertoire of composers from the southern Peruvian Andean and songs from the codices of Martínez de Compañón of Trujillo and Zuola of Cusco. She was invited by the National Library to perform Peruvian works rescued by the library’s music archive.

She has recorded traditional mestizo music from the southern Peruvian Andes and Quechua and Aymara peasant music in Cusco and Puno. She was several times invited soloist for chamber ensembles, for the Cusco Symphony Orchestra and the National Symphony Orchestra with whom she collaborated on an album dedicated to the Puno region. She was invited to present recitals and concerts at universities and colleges in Amsterdam, Santiago de Chile, Mexico and Brazil.

Edith was the winner of the first prize for academic Peruvian music in Trujillo and has received recognition from the Municipality of Arequipa, Macusani, Moquegua, Puno and Ayaviri. She has also been recognised by the Universidad del Altiplano as an exponent of traditional music.

She has been invited to speak on the influences and resistances of Andean singing, at the Magisterial spill, at the 50

National Library, at the House of Literature and at the University of Foz de Iguazú in Brazil. Edith is currently dedicated to teaching traditional mestizo and peasant music from the Quechua and Aymara peoples to children in Ayaviri.

(Theatre503 at the Latitude Festival); VOLPONE (The Rose Lipman); VENICE PRESERV’D (The Spectators’ Guild); Mark Watson’s THE HOTEL, A NUMBER (Edinburgh Fringe Festival); ACCOMPLICE (Menier Chocolate Factory); BLUE ON BLUE, TROLLS (Theatre503); PEACE, THE BACCHAE, THE PERSIANS (various ancient amphitheatres, Cyprus); THE PLEBEIANS REHEARSE THE UPRISING (Arcola); JULIUS CAESAR (Barbican). TV & Film includes: PROFESSOR T, BEWARE THE TROJAN HORSE, THE WORLD WE KNEW, THE SKY IN BLOOM and SCREWED

Joana Isidoro Praça (Violin) is an accomplished violinist and educator who graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where she earned both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees, followed by the prestigious Junior Fellowship (2021/2022). With a vibrant portfolio career, Joana balances her passion for performance and teaching. Performing highlights include a solo debut with the Lisbon’s Sinfonietta; leading a baroque opera production for the Grimeborn Festival in London; regularly playing with UK professional orchestras such as the National Symphony Orchestra; side by side projects with the LSO and the Academy of Ancient Music; an Academy position at the Chipping Campden Music Festival (2023) as well as regularly playing with major orchestras in Lisbon, Portugal.

Joana has performed in renowned venues worldwide including Royal Festival Hall, Barbican Hall, Konzerthaus Berlin, Romanian Athenaeum and Beijing Forbidden City Concert Hall. Dedicated to education, Joana has led various projects in the UK and Portugal. Notably, she collaborated with the Decoda Ensemble, affiliated with Carnegie Hall, to deliver workshops at the Centre for Young Musicians in Taunton. Her commitment to music education reflects her belief in the transformative power of music.

Joana currently teaches at Junior Guildhall Brentwood, and Fireworks Music School.

Johnny Figueroa Rodriguez (Indigenous Percussion and Wind) is a multi instrumentalist, who specialises in Andean wind instruments and percussion, and is based in the UK. He was born in Trujillo, Peru, and has a very strong Andean heritage, with music being of huge importance in his life, an art that has passed from one generation to the next. As a child, Johnny started experimenting with sounds by picking up leaves, reeds and sticks while shepherding his goats and sheep in the mountains. He joined local bands which performed in Perú and South America before travelling to Europe performing in concerts and festivals. Some notable places including Glastonbury, Womad and the Eden Project. Johnny has worked for the BBC, the British Museum, and Horniman Museum.

He teaches Quena, Sikus and Charango at Royal Holloway University of London, and runs workshops in schools and community centres. Johnny supports communities and cultural associations, is the organiser of the Andean Festival “Fiesta del Sol” and leads the family Andean bands Kausary, Manzana Tropical and Corazon Cuestino.

Simon Rhodes (Las Casas, Viceroy Areche, Assassin) Training: Drama Centre London.

Theatre includes: WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION (County Hall); POSH (UK Tour); NO MAN’S LAND (Wyndham’s Theatre and UK Tour); CORNELIUS (Finborough Theatre and 59E59 Theater, New York); OPERATION EPSILON, DEAR BRUTUS (Southwark Playhouse); JUST TO GET MARRIED, LABURNUM GROVE (Finborough Theatre); A PIT OF CLAY, STYX (Rift); BILLY CHICKENS IS A PSYCOPATH SUPERSTAR

Isabella Sarmiento-Abadia (Design Team), a British-born Colombian and graduate of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, is a versatile designer with experience across a range of artistic media. With a strong interest in creating immersive set designs for both stage and screen, she tailors her approach to fit various performance spaces, from traditional theatres to outdoor festival settings. Known for her hands-on style, 51

ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES Isabella is deeply involved in the crafting of props and set elements, bringing a tangible sense of artistry to each project.

For THE MOUTH OF THE GODS, she served as a design collaborator, specifically contributing her skills in embroidery and puppet-making to add intricate details that enhance the storytelling. Through this creative involvement, Isabella developed a strong connection to the project, allowing her artistry to support the emotional and visual depth of the piece. Her commitment to authentic, detailed work defines her approach and enriches the productions she joins.

Writing: Danny is the author of the best selling novel RANDOM ACTS OF HEROIC LOVE (Doubleday/Black Swan) nominated for the British Book Awards and translated into 21 languages. His second novel THE HALF LIFE OF JOSHUA JONES was published

by Unbound.

John Sloboda OBE FBA (Music Consultant) is a singer, pianist, conductor, and researcher.

He is a founder member of the vocal quartet of El Parnaso Hyspano. He has sung with many groups including the Chapel Choir of the Queen’s College Oxford, the Chorus of the Academy of St Martin’s in the Field, and the City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus. At Keele University he was founder conductor of the Keele Bach Choir. He is currently Assistant Conductor of Chorus of Dissent, a community choir based in Hackney, London. He is also a music psychologist, currently Emeritus Professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

John is author of many books, including EXPLORING THE MUSICAL MIND. In 2018 he was awarded the OBE for services to Psychology and Music.

Danny Scheinmann (Sepúlveda, Bishop Monsoco, Hugo Patterson) graduated in theatre from the University of Strasbourg, France. Theatre: WHEN YOU PASS OVER MY TOMB (Arcola), JOY (Stratford East), PLAYING FOR TIME (Sheffield, Crucible), ONE HOUR EIGHTEEN MINUTES (Sputnik Theatre), SLAVE (The Lowry, Manchester), ADELAIDE ROAD (RSC), PLAY OF THE WEATHER (Hampton Court), RAMAYANA (Birmingham Rep and Royal National Theatre), QUARANTINE (Birmingham Rep), THE TALE THAT WAGS THE DOG (Theatre Royal Plymouth, Lyric Hammersmith), THE JOLLIES (Stephen Joseph Theatre), A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (Improbable for The English Shakespeare Co. National Tour), RASHOMON (Yellow Earth, National Tour), A WINTER’S TALE (Theatre Royal, Bath), THE TEMPEST (AandBC World Tour), THE HANSEL GRETEL MACHINE & THE LOST CHILD (David Glass Ensemble, National and World Tours).

Edmund Taylor (Violin) specialises in Historical Performance. Founder and Director of period ensemble Bellot. Bellot Ensemble took part in the Brighton Early Music Festival live scheme, followed by a tour across the UK performing Lampe’s THE DRAGON OF WANTLEY with New Sussex Opera in 2024. The group has also been selected for the Philip and Dorothy Green Young Artist scheme 2024/25, and will soon be recording their debut album, exploring 17th century repertoire. Edmund performs regularly across the UK and Europe as a violinist and leader for other period instrument ensembles, playing in such venues as the Royal Albert Hall, Teatro Ponchielli, Cremona and Southbank Centre. He features as a soloist on the newly released Armonico Consort Signum Classics release of their CD of F.Scarlatti works.

Edmund also enjoys film work, working as musical supporting artist, recording artist and musical advisor on the films EMMA and NAPOLEON and the TV series THE GREAT.

Film: THE WORLD WILL TREMBLE (Lior Geller), ENTEBBE (Jose Padilha), STAN AND OLLIE (Jon Baird), ENDGAME (Pete Travis), THE MAN WHO CRIED (Sally Potter), THE WEST WITTERING AFFAIR (David Scheinmann), LEON THE PIG FARMER (Vadim Jean & Gary Sinyor), JUDAS (Charlie Carner).

TV: BOAT STORY (BBC), HAPLESS (Amazon Prime), BENIDORM (ITV), AMBASSADORS (Mitchell and Webb, ITV), WORLD WITHOUT END (Michael Caton-Jones, Channel 4), MONTY PYTHON - ALMOST THE TRUTH, ROSEMARY AND THYME, MILE HIGH, 99-1, SAM SATURDAY. 52

Michael Walling (Director) is Artistic Director of Border Crossings and the ORIGINS Festival. He has directed numerous productions across four continents, winning awards for TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA in the US and PAUL & VIRGINIE in Mauritius.

Kelsey Yuhara (Project Manager) studied Theatre at Whitman College (BA) and Site Specific Performance at Mountview (MA) and has contributed to various performances, training programmes and collectives as a performer, improvisor, producer, administrator, facilitator and director in the USA, Turkey, Iran, Italy and currently the UK. Common themes across the various strands of her work include multiculturalism, the legacy of both recent and more remote history, environmentalism, feminism, and the representation of marginalised voices.

Opera includes: THE RING for the ENO at the Coliseum and the Barbican, DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE (Valladolid), DON GIOVANNI, COSÍ FAN TUTTE, THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO (Stowe), XERXES (Houston and San Francisco), NIXON IN CHINA (Athens) and THE HANDMAID’S TALE (Toronto).

For Border Crossings: SUPPLIANTS OF SYRIA, REMEMBRANCES, THE GREAT EXPERIMENT, THIS FLESH IS MINE (coproduced with Ashtar Theatre, Palestine), CONSUMED and THE ORIENTATIONS TRILOGY (with Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre, China), THE DILEMMA OF A GHOST (with National Theatre of Ghana), BULLIE’S HOUSE, DOUBLE TONGUE (UK and Hungary), MAPPA MUNDI (UK and Mexico), TOUFANN, BRAVELY FOUGHT THE QUEEN. Film: SUPPLIANTS OF SYRIA, TOTEM LATAMAT, MAGNETIC NORTH (with the British Museum), MORE THAN WORDS, HIDDEN HISTORIES.

Recent projects include producing for Teatro Vivo’s Artist of Change project and Bernadette Russell’s THE CREEK for Lewisham Borough of Culture 2022, directing and adapting the Japanese novel RADIO IMAGINATION for the online immersive experience (2023), and creating and directing the new interactive festive production YOUR CHRISTMAS CAROL EXPERIENCE (2023). She performs regularly in London with the UK’s first pan-Asian improv team Comediasians, and throughout the UK with CSI: Crime Scene Improvisation.

Other productions: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival, USA), MACBETH (Mauritius), THE TEMPEST (India), ROMEO AND JULIET (USA).

Michael has published extensively on theatre and related subjects, and is Visiting Professor at Rose Bruford College.

Border Crossings has presented this performance without charging for tickets.

If you would like to make a financial contribution to support our future work, please go to our Just Giving page:

www.justgiving.com/bordercrossings

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BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE MOUTH OF THE GODS 54

Various: THE MOUTH OF THE GODS rehearsals. Photo: John Cobb Bottom right: First rehearsal at Hoxton Hall. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara 55

Produced by:

First rehearsal at Hoxton Hall. Photo: Kelsey Yuhara