2024

15 min text-based performance

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querida cucaracha unfolds as a tender love letter to an unlikely muse: a cockroach, an animal dreaded and loathed by many. Digging through layers of fear, disgust and shame, Valerie Reding invites the public to follow them to the gloomy margins and look closely at this fascinating, prolific and resilient creature. Transforming from one appearance into the other and playing with references to the Mexican Revolution and Pop Culture, the performer unveils the cockroach as a symbol of resilience and resistance. A testament to survival amid the ravages of racial, colonial, sexist and ableist capitalism. A hopeful and empowering reclamation of pride and solidarity in deviancy. A loving rallying cry for collective liberation.