Bedtime Stories: Mexican Folk Tales – a Matter of Life and Death.
In Mexican culture, death is not taboo, hidden away behind closed doors and polite euphemisms. La Catrina, the elegant skeletal Lady of Dead, finds a place in almost all Mexican houses, a reminder that death is always present in life – and on el dia de los muertos, the dead come back to commune with the living once more.
Unsurprisingly, the folk tales of Mexico often reflect this embrace of the other world, and storyteller Mike Payton brings some of his favourites out into the light in this odd, thought provoking collection: a chance meeting with Death on a mountain; a man who refuses to leave offerings for his dead parents and the consequences of this slight; and perhaps, if we can face it, a meeting with La Llorona, the crying ghost of the Mexican night.
Bio
Mike Payton is a Midlands based storyteller whose first love are the tales of Mexico. He lived and worked there for some years, sharing songs and stories with his friends and neighbours. He has performed for The British Museum and The Welcome Trust as part of their Day of the Dead celebrations. www.mikepayton.org
Curated and Hosted by
Dr. Amy Hale is an Atlanta based writer, curator and critic, ethnographer and folklorist speaking and writing about esoteric history, art, culture, women and Cornwall. She is the author of Ithell Colquhoun: Genius of the Fern Loved Gully (Strange Attractor 2020) and is currently working on several Colquhoun related manuscripts. She is also the editor of Essays on Women in Western Esotericism: Beyond Seeresses and Sea Priestesses (Palgrave 2022). She has contributed gallery texts and essays for a number of institutions including Tate, Camden Arts Centre, Art UK, Arusha Galleries, Heavenly Records and she is a curator and host for the Last Tuesday Society lecture series.
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