Rabinal Achi

An ancient Mayan play
Translated by Dennis Tedlock
Directed by Lakin Valdéz
May 4, 2014

This 600-year-old Mayan performative text is a rare example of pre-Hispanic tradition that is still performed in Mexico today. Told through masked dance, theater, and music, this origin story of the Mayan people reenacts a conflict between two major political entities and addresses popular and political subjects concerning the inhabitants of the region of Rabinal. Its survival is an outstanding historical, ethnical, literary, artistic, anthropological, sociological, and spiritual testimony to cultural resistance against colonial domination.