This event is wheelchair accessible.
Portuguese with surtitles in German and English15.- / 25.- / 35.-
MEXA was founded following outbreaks of violence in homeless shelters in São Paulo. The inclusive collective of mothers, Black, trans and LGBTIQ* artists and activists explores the relationship between life and art, street and institution, politics and aesthetics. Following the acclaimed performance Pumpitopera Transatlantica, which combined the personal stories of MEXA with the theme of the Odyssey, the eagerly awaited new theater work is coming directly to Basel after its premiere in Brussels.
Based on the Last Supper, MEXA prepare us for the farewell of one of their members - or even the end of the whole group! Together with the performers, part of the audience takes a seat at a long table to eat. Dishes and stories alternate, religious allusions are interwoven with tales of precarious life and evangelical churches in Brazil. A furious and thought-provoking evening about the obligation to tell the stories of those who cannot tell them - and the promise to continue telling them.
Duration: 80 Minutes
Credits
Creation
MEXA
Direction and dramaturgy
João Turchi
Performers and co-creators
Aivan, Alê Tradução, Anita Silvia, Daniela Pinheiro, Dourado, Patrícia Borges, Suzy Muniz, Tatiane Arcanjo
Video performer, video creation and technical direction
Laysa Elias
Direction and movement assistant
Lucas Heymanns
Soundtrack and sound design
Podeserdesligado
Light design
Iara Izidoro
Producter and art director
Lu Mugayar
Executive producer
Francesca Tedeschi
Costume design
Anuro Anuro e Cacau Francisco
Scenography
Vão Arquitetura
Posture and gesture
Daniela Pinheiro
Vocal direction
Dourado
Dramaturgical collaboration
Gustavo Colombini
Research and artistic advisor
Guilherme Giufrida
Production
MEXA
Coproduction
Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Casa do Povo, Kampnagel
Special thanks to
Esponja, Benjamin Serousse, Marcela Amaral, Felipe Martinez, Olivia Ardui
Biography
Mexa was created in 2015 after episodes of gender violence in some shelter homes in São Paulo. Since its genesis, the collective explores and debates the distances and proximities between the street and the museum, life and art, politics and aesthetics through improvisational strategies, biodrama, documentary theater and collective creation.
The group presented in various venues and festivals, such as the 14th VERBO (2018), the 11th and 13th Sesc Biennial of Dance (2019 and 2021), the 6th Mostra Internacional de Teatro (2020), Panorama Raft Festival (2021), Arte Passagem (2022) and Mamba Negra Festival (2022). They also participated in the exhibitions Dance Stories (Museum of Art of São Paulo, 2020), Somos muit+s (Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo, 2021), Começo de século (Galeria Jaqueline Martins, 2021). In 2023, MEXA premiered the show Poperópera Transatlântica in Berlin (Hau Theatre), which was also presented at the Kunstenfestivaldesart (in Brussels), Lisbon (Bairro Alto Theatre), Hamburg (Kampnagel) and Leeds (Transform Festival). In 2019, Mexa received the Denilto Gomes de Dança Award in the category «visions of black and gender aesthetics». Since 2016, MEXA has been a resident group of Casa do Povo.