‘Ingobernable,’ the Netflix Take on Mexican Political Scandal
Going along with the twists and turns of Ingobernable requires something more than the suspension of disbelief: the debut episode includes the first lady of Mexico eluding secret service agents and running through the streets of Mexico City undetected (and in heels) thanks to the sly use of a popped-up jacket collar and some well-timed escapes out … Read more
Chávez on TV: What “El Comandante” Says About Rising Populism
Moisés Naím doesn’t shy away from new projects. But the Venezuelan economist and TV host’s latest creative endeavor has sparked more than the usual controversy. “El Comandante,” a telenovela about Venezuela’s late former President Hugo Chávez , takes liberties with the strongman’s biography even as it considers his legacy and sheds light on his rise … Read more
10 Things to Do: Mexico City
Mexico City continues to reinvent itself. Along with world-class museums, architectural gems from its Spanish colonial and Aztec past, and a vibrant urban culture, it is also a favorite destination for foodies and modern art collectors. 1. Bike La ReformaOn Sundays, Paseo de la Reforma, the artery that traverses the city center, is closed to … Read more
Mexico City’s Mercado Roma
A trendy hangout for foodies and families in Mexico City is Mercado Roma, an upscale market offering everything from churros to tacos to huaraches(a dish of masa, varied toppings and queso fresco). Launched in May 2014 and located in the hip La Roma neighborhood, the concept was born of a traditional Mexican market, but offers … Read more
“La Historia Secreta del Proceso de Paz”
In August 2010, three days into his first term as president, Colombia’s Juan Manuel Santos met for the first time with his Venezuelan counterpart, Hugo Chávez. Relations between their two countries had hit bottom during the administration of Santos’s predecessor, Álvaro Uribe. But now, in the city of Santa Marta on Colombia’s Caribbean coast, the … Read more
“Things We Lost in the Fire”
What terrifies more, the past or the present? The imaginary or the real? The supernatural or the self? Don’t answer. Not yet. Not until you’ve read Mariana Enríquez’s masterful, disturbing short story collection, Things We Lost in the Fire (Hogarth Press). Wait until you’ve traveled, eyes open, through her perilous terrain, where either/or categories are … Read more
Why Reinaldo Arenas Still Matters for Cuba’s LGBT Community
On Dec. 7, 1990, the Cuban poet and novelist Reinaldo Arenas, suffering from advanced AIDS, ended his life after a decade spent in exile in the United States. Arenas had become a vocal opponent of the Cuban government and, in his suicide note, personally blamed Fidel Castro for the poverty and displacement that defined much of his … Read more
Cómo un director de teatro venezolano conquistó Broadway
Read in English Una tarde de septiembre pasado, sentado en un taxi en los alrededores del centro de Manhattan, Moisés Kaufman recibió una llamada en la que le avisaban que había sido seleccionado para recibir la Medalla Nacional de las Artes, la máxima distinción artística de los Estados Unidos. “Lo primero que dije fue: ‘¿estás … Read more
How a Venezuelan Playwright Conquered Broadway
Leer en español One evening in September, while sitting in a cab in midtown Manhattan, Moisés Kaufman got a phone call telling him he’d been selected to receive the National Medal of Arts, the U.S.’ government’s highest artistic honor. “The first thing I said was ‘Are you sure you got the right number?’” Kaufman told AQ … Read more
Understanding Indigenous Identity through Film
Anthropology and film have cohabited since the early days of cinema. The blending of artful narrative with scientifically grounded ethnography was pioneered as a genre – dubbed “ethnofiction” – by Jean Rouch, one of the foremost documentary filmmakers of the 20th century. Rouch’s films focused on social life and rituals in Niger and Mali and, … Read more
Why a Quechua Novelist Doesn’t Want His Work Translated
On the 79th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Walt Whitman published his first edition of Leaves of Grass. That such quintessentially American poetry would be published on a day commemorating the country’s birth suggests both homage and irony — perhaps intentional. But when Pablo Landeo Muñoz published his novel Aqupampa (Instituto Francés de Estudios Andinos) on … Read more
Argentina’s Tonolec Experiments With Tradition
When Charo Bogarín and Diego Pérez formed the electronica duo that would become Tonolec in 2000, the music they created had little to do with the cultural heritage of their native Argentina. But when the worst economic crisis in the country’s history hit the following year, that began to change. On a self-described mission to … Read more
Indigenous Imagery in the Art of Mariana Castillo Deball
In the late 1970s, the makers of an American antipsychotic drug called Stelazine were looking for a way to market their product to consumers in magazines and medical journals. The campaign they settled on featured indigenous masks and headdresses from Africa and Canada alongside slogans like, “Lift the mask of schizophrenic withdrawal.” For a version … Read more
