Mi madre y el dinero (ma mère et l’argent)

A true gem of contemporary Mexican theatre, Mi madre y el dinero (literally “My Mother and Money”) tackles work, theatre, and economics in a heady blend of social critique, tender lyricism, and political observation. It features director Anarcasis Ramos alongside his mother.

As they perform rituals from his childhood—cutting his hair, making chorizo together—they reflect on some of the forty-plus jobs Josefina has worked during her life, thanks to her remarkable can-do spirit.

Playing with the conventions of documentary theatre, Ramos reveals how the chaos of his mother’s life, at once glorious and messy, resembles his life as an artist. A queen in the small kingdom that is her household and a storyteller in her own right, Josefina has learned to pretend in order to get by in a world where poverty and violence go hand in hand. On stage, she shares some of her key strategies, dispensing invaluable wisdom from her perspective as a survivor and entrepreneur.

- Support the Festival’s mission by attending a performance of Mi madre y el dinero at the benefit evening on June 9, 2026!