The performances "Brujas Putas Santas" and "Pilón" offer a distinct yet complementary perspective on the struggles and triumphs of women. While "Brujas Putas Santas" delves into the reclaiming of ancestral wisdom and the ongoing battle for liberation, "Pilón" celebrates the resilience and empowerment of women through traditional labor chants. Together, they offer a multifaceted narrative of female empowerment, resistance, and communal healing.
Bruja Putas Santas – Sofie Douda
We call for the decolonization of the body and the earth, seeking the wisdom and magic of our ancestors to continue the fight for the liberation of humanity and nature.
How many rapes made you?
Nobody is free until we are all free.
The wise healers, who possessed knowledge of nature, spirituality, and community, were dehumanized, persecuted, tortured, and burned.
A systematic genocide to subjugate half of humanity and nature.
The patriarchy, capitalism, and colonialism enslave, seeking ownership to enrich themselves.
The violence necessary to maintain these systems of lies and oppression knows no bounds.
The liberation and healing of women* is the key.
The only thing that can save us is community. Without community, there is no healing. Without community, there is no revolution. Without community, there is no future.
Pilón- Andrea Vezga Acevedo
Cantos de pilón (pilón chants) are work chants performed traditionally by women
in rural areas in Venezuela. They are sung while grinding corn in big mortars,
normally between two people. It is an extremely arduous task and the chants are
executed to make the task easier and to express joy and/or sorrow. They reveal
the strength of the woman and her hope for redemption.
This is only one of many traditional labor chants in Venezuelan folklore, which
unfortunately are disappearing due to industrialization. In the areas where it still
survives, it is a symbol of female empowerment. It is an equally quiet and loud
protest that involves the whole being: body, voice, sweat, blood, and spirit. It is
labor, it is dance, it is song, it is a coping mechanism.
Performer: Daniela HernandezPerformer: Andrea VezgaSinger, Musician: Thamires TannousPerformer, Singer: Sofie Douda