In “Reflejo,” I aim to retell a story of the colonization of Ecuadorian indigenous bodies through movement by juxtaposing Incan cosmovision with the catholic church, in an elaborate setting. It is within this collision of sacred spaces that the erasure of Ecuadorian culture, language, and identity takes place. Staged as a journey, I use lights, storytelling, body painting, and the physical stripping of indigenous clothes to embody and reenact generational lineage of colonization. Along the way INTI, the Incan God Sun, is captured through the use of mirror reflections.

The piece dramatically exposes my brown body: first, covered in white paint—a second skin that encapsulates my cultures’ internalized colonization and erasure of indigeneity. As the journey continues, and I reconcile that I have been following a reflection of an imposed Christian God, I eventually regain power to decide whether I want to finish my journey inside the christianity, covered in whiteness, trying to become the colonizer’s reflections, or, to leave the imposed culture in the search for my own image in the mirror. This is when I cover my body with many other colors and let them mix as I dance my traditional music—a representation of the mestizaje of my lineage.

Throughout the piece, I aim to give Spanish and English the same amount of space in the performance, just as they exist in her mind. I also use my small knowledge of Kichwa, with the intention to invoke my ancestors’ legacy into the space, and to reconnect to the indigenous roots.

“Reflejo” represents how my ancestors were stripped of their culture and symbolizes how these practices continue; however, it is also my brave attempt to reconcile all the different parts that made me who I am.