This show was first presented at an event called “Bombon”, a queer performance night held in La Popular, a night club downtown Xalapa Veracruz, curated by me with support of our queer art collective SER, including presentations of other local and international artists; Corbin Lamont, Gibrana Cervantes, Yaya Ferso, and more. This event had more than 100 attendants, and was a powerful happening that fueled connectedness in the Xalapaña queer community. 

 

My original idea was to create a show where I would simply play on stage with things that I knew brought my pleasure, like dancing and fondling fruits, with the idea of showing folx they too could simply enjoy pleasure with simple objects. However, in the process of creation, I kept being interrupted by monsters in the way of my own enjoyment of making the piece. I was confronted harshly with my perfectionism, grief, and ultimately the question of whether or not I was even deserving of pleasure at all. 

 

I realized then that this piece wasn’t just about one side of pleasure, but about all sides of pleasure, including the barriers that block me from experiencing it.  

 

In rehearsals, I heard from the perfectionist monster itself that it wanted to be a part of the show quite physically, so I interpreted it into a mask inspired by Mexican Luchao Libre wrestling masks, that I designed and fabricated. I then continued rehearsing with the mask, listening to the messages coming through when embodying that character. I played with the juxtaposition between being naked and covered up, and created a non-gendered figure by taping my nipples.  I realized how much love and compassion this little monster desired. How deeply it just wanted to be allowed to play, to be weird, to feel it all. It was only when I accepted the whole of what was showing up, and literally danced with the monsters, that I could get to the part of the yummy pleasure that I desired to experience and share. 

 

Pleasure Spells has become a magic playground for me to creatively explore my path towards “yummy pleasure” without ignoring the sticky parts that come up. It incorporates the colors, the flowers, the fruits — the natural richness and pleasures that Veracruz, Mexico has shared with me.  Through turning these inner workings into a show, I am able to transform my blockages into something beautiful. My hope is that it may serve as a Spell towards Pleasure for us all.