Harakiri

Les Impuxibles

Currently, suicide is the leading cause of non-natural death in Catalonia, and contrary to common belief, the risk increases from the age of sixty, especially among women. In Harakiri, we confront the pain of a son who has lost his mother and wonders if that pain would be different had she died in any other way. Despite the prevalence of violence, disillusionment, and discomfort in our society, suicide remains a taboo, and the feeling of guilt continues to weigh heavily on the survivors.

The silence also prevents us from questioning the political and social aspects of suicide beyond immediate pain: stating that a person cannot commit suicide is akin to saying their life doesn't belong to them. And if it does belong to them, how do we understand suicide? As a personal decision? As a defection? As a social condemnation or an act of freedom? The stage helps us address the questions stemming from grief: through the presence of a mother who explains herself after death; through a space that is simultaneously an empty house and the emptiness in all houses occupied by absence; through multiple bodies that remind us this isn't solely the story of a mother and son but a narrative woven from many more wounds and stories, conveyed through words, movement, music and space.

Stage direction Les Impuxibles (Clara and Ariadna Peya)
Performers Sílvia Capell, Haley Diallo, Montse Esteve, Helena Gispert, Kiko López, Ariadna Peya, Clara Peya and Pau Vinyals
Text María Velasco
Choreography Ariadna Peya
Music Clara Peya
Artistic guidance María Velasco and Judit Colomer Mascaró
Dramaturgy and translation Marc Villanueva Mir
Assistant director Xavi Buxeda
Movement assistant and cover Olga Lladó Valls
Coach Queralt Casasayas
Stage design Judit Colomer Mascaró
Lighting design Conchita Pons
Costumes design Joan Ros
Sound design Carles Bernal
Video design Carme Gomila
Technical director Jordi Berch
Production and distribution Mireia Gràcia Bell-lloch
Accessibility consultant Èlia Farrero
Sign language interpreters Èlia Farrero and Berta Frigola Solé
Electronics consultant Carles Delgado y Carles Bernal
Assistant Direction Intern Yaiza Peña Soley
Consultants Asun Pié Balaguer, Martín Correa-Urquiza, Júlia Sánchez Cid, Tali Vaimberg, Clara Rubio and Meri Varó
Photography Noemí Elias Bascuñana and Xavi Buxeda

With special thanks to Fundació La Plana, Associació Catalana per la Prevenció del Suïcidi, Mariona Castillo, Gràcia Camps Miró

Coproduced by Les Impuxibles, Teatre Nacional de Catalunya and Dansa Metropolitana, supported by Institut Català d’Empreses Culturals, Institut d’Estudis Baleàrics, INAEM and Fundació Carulla, project awarded with the SOS Cultura scholarship.

This project was awarded one of the Premis Barcelona 2020 Scholarships by Ajuntament de Barcelona.