Maxhete

[slurring] 

“… you going… b-back alon’????? Thr… not!!! .  by the banana planntations????!” 

ask the w w’rong tree in those swamps, you won’t t make it back. spirit doesn’t walk—drags, through h the mud, with a blade too big for one to c-carry.” [pause]. “he’s not t just a man. he’s the shadows of those left behin d d” . 

That was the first time I encountered Maxhete.  

'"`-._,-'"`-._,-'"`-._,-'"`-._,-'"`-._,-'"`-._,-'"`-._,-'"`-._,- 

Inspired by nightlife anecdotes, Costa Rican leyendas, and Central American histories, this performance invocation delves into the spectral presence of Maxhete. 

• Mario Barrantes Espinoza (1991) is a Costa Rican-Nicaraguan artist based in Brussels. Having graduated from P.A.R.T.S, they went on to collaborate with François Chaignaud, Théo Mercier, Benjamin Abel Meirhaeghe, Jozef Wouters, Michiel Vandevelde and Eszter Salamon, and to perform as guest artist for musician Peaches and The Subs. Their work articulates performance, the (re)writing of texts, and the use of voice, with materials sourced from pop culture and mainstream media. In 2023, Mario curated the first edition of the Culo shaking night... 'til tears get dry at Kaaitheater, around their first performance, El cantar del playo.