Grupo Cultural Yuyachkani Festival of Performance, Politics and Memory

Yale Repertory Theatre and the Yale College Theatre Studies Program host a residency at Yale with Peru’s most important theatre collective, Grupo Cultural Yuyachkani. Since 1971, this company has worked at the forefront of political performance, theatrical experimentation, and indigenous performance cultures. Yuyachkani is a Quechua word that means “I am thinking/I am remembering.”
Under this name, the theatre group has devoted itself to the collective exploration of embodied social memory, particularly in relation to questions of ethnicity, violence, and memory in Peru. Known for its creative embrace of indigenous performance forms as well as cosmopolitan theatrical forms, Yuyachkani is among the most important companies of Latin America’s so called “New Popular Theatre.” The group actively participated in the activism that led to the formation of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Peru, and continues to participate in advocacy around the Commission findings and recommendations; for this work, Yuyachkani received Peru’s National Human Rights Award in 2000.

The Festival will include the following events:

PERFORMANCES
Adiós Ayacucho
Performed by Augusto Casafranca, with musical accompaniment by Ana Correa
April 13 & 15 – 8PM
New Theater ( 1156 Chapel Street)
April 15 – Post-show discussion with members of the creative team.
Performed in Spanish with English supertitles.

Antígona
Performed by Teresa Ralli
April 14 & 16 – 8PM
New Theater ( 1156 Chapel Street)
April 16 – Post-show discussion with members of the creative team.
Performed in Spanish with English supertitles.

SYMPOSIUM
Human Rights and Theatre
April 19 – 4:30-7:30 PM
New Theatre ( 1156 Chapel Street)

Rose Cuchillo
Performed by Ana Correa

LECTURE-DEMONSTRATIONS
Yuyachkani: The Actors Prepare
April 12, 2:30-3:30 PM
The Fence Club ( 220 York Street, Room 101)

A lecture-demonstration about Yuyachkani’s development and acting methods.
Gender, Theatre, and Activism in Peru
April 14, 2:30-3:30 PM
The Fence Club ( 220 York Street, Room 101)

Theatre, Memory, and Community
April 21, 6:00-7:30 PM
Yale Law School( 127 Wall Street, 2 nd Floor Faculty Lounge)