DAME LA RECETA!

Overview

This multidisciplinary work explores the complexities of pursuing the “American Dream,” especially as it relates to preserving cultural identity while confronting social and political issues, including transgenerational trauma. It reflects the nuanced experiences of first-generation individuals and immigrants, emphasizing the challenges and resilience that define their journey. At its core, the work centers on the power of community, how coming together in sacred communal spaces allows people to celebrate, mourn, and heal collectively. These gatherings are more than social events; they are acts of resistance and remembrance, connecting us back to our roots through sight, sound, and taste. The concept of a “recipe” is used symbolically, not just referring to food, but as a metaphor for the ingredients needed to move through life: the ways we move our bodies, create community, and assert our presence in a world that often marginalizes us. Through these shared practices, people of multiple backgrounds, identities, and lived experiences are brought together. This is where culture and liberation meet, where joy becomes radical and preservation becomes a celebration. By blending performance, tradition, and activism, the work offers a dynamic space for honoring heritage while envisioning new, inclusive futures. Ultimately, this piece serves as a vibrant testament to the enduring strength and creativity of marginalized communities. It’s a call to take up space with pride and intention, to find healing in togetherness, and to recognize that cultural preservation is itself a revolutionary act. This project is made possible through support from the MAP Fund, affirming the importance of multidisciplinary art in advancing social change and collective healing.

About the Artist

Carne Viva Dance Theatre is a vibrant and flavorful Philadelphia and Miami based collective of artivists de aqui y de alla committed to culture as liberation, and their bodies as an act of rebellion. We create intimate, playful, and culturally astute works that honor our collective stories, and celebrate our identities. We collide our Afro-Cuban influences, social dance, and Modern improvisational practices to cultivate a compelling kaleidoscope of rhythm, movement, and storytelling to pull you into the next dimension through dance, theatre, and original sounds to awaken our audiences. Carne Viva were the recipients of the BIPOC New Work Tracks (2022) for Cannonball Festival, AIR at Mascher Space Cooperative and MOtiVE Brooklyn. The company was a (2022-2023) guest performing artist at Artistry In Rhythm Dance Conference at Miami Dade College and have performed their most recent work, Dame La Receta!, in the Perez Art Museum in Miami, FL and at The Judson Memorial Church for Movement Research. Carne Viva were presented at the Inaugural Latinx Movement Festival in Washington D.C, and Miami Dance Hub, Miami Dances! (2024). They are 2024 MAP Fund grantees for their current project, Dame La Receta!.

Credits