by Emily Trejo, dramaturg
In Mexican culture, it is not uncommon to hear of people’s experiences with many of the creatures in their folklore. One may say these stories are made up, used to frighten children. And though I would mostly agree with you, there is one legend I do believe in, La Llorona. I have never personally had an experience with her, but my grandma has. My grandma is not a superstitious woman so I believe every word she says. To listen to her story click on the video below. An English translation has also been provided if you do not understand Spanish.
As my abuelita says, after La Llorona cries, something happens to your family. That night after she cried, all the dogs in town began to howl at once. The dogs knew she was there and were aware of the omen she brought with her. Later that same day my grandma heard what La Llorona had brought to the family. When La Llorona cried, a huge fight broke out among the family. Two of the cousins were angry with one another and began to fight. Out of rage they each grabbed a knife and started going at each other. One cousin lost all his fingers on one hand and the other had a huge gash in one of his cheeks. The cousins each lost a part of themselves that day, but La Llorona got what she wanted.
5 Comments
Pingback:
Lisa Eardley
In the folklore, does La Llorona only haunt specific areas or has she been seen in other places?
Emily Trejo
In the stories, La Llorona mostly haunts near bodies of water. Most often I have heard rivers but there are other tellings that also state she can be found near lakes or even wells. However, when people encounter her in real life there isn’t necessarily any type of water around.
Lisa Eardley
The production was amazing. The performance was so intriguing and well done. The set was great, the lighting and sound were eerie and the holograms added so much to the performance. The costumes also added so much to the performance. Thanks so much for all your creative work!
sgraham
Thank you for your kind words! I know our production team will be glad to hear them!