Cuentos de miedo y otras pendejadas (Scary Stories and Other Stupid Things)

An immersive dance-theater experience that transforms haunted-house chills and childhood fears into a darkly funny spectacle of visual and surreal storytelling!

Cuentos de Miedo y Otras Pendejadas (Scary Stories and Other Stupid Things) It is a 65-minute immersive work—created and directed by visionary choreographer Elliott Ortiz—dares to smash the old scare tactics once used by nannies, grandparents, and parents, unmasking childhood myths for what they truly were: manipulative lies disguised as bedtime stories. Through dark humor, surrealism, and fearless movement, Ortiz reimagines the infamous legends of El Cuco, La Bruja, and El Duende, exposing the psychological scars these figures carved into childhood.

The story follows Martha, a flamboyant nanny tasked with caring for two mischievous girls, Gaby and Chela, over a weekend. As their behavior spirals, Martha resorts to the familiar parental tactic of telling frightening folk stories. But this time, the stories don’t remain tales—the mythical figures burst into reality, turning the children’s bedroom into a surreal battlefield between discipline, fear, and imagination.

More than spectators, audience members are drawn directly into the chaos. They respond to Martha’s desperate pleas for help, decide whether she should summon a creature, stop, or try another tactic, and may even be “traded” for a child onstage—placed in the clutches of El Duende or La Bruja.

Breaking with traditional theater, pure dance, and drag conventions, Elliott Ortiz creates a hybrid stage language where performers act, dance, sing, and tell stories. At moments, the piece flirts with café-cabaret, offering a playful yet biting manifesto against the scare tactics many experienced in childhood. By dismantling these inherited fears, the production sparks a bold cultural conversation through fearless performance. Ortiz’s work is unapologetic, provocative, and unafraid to risk discomfort in order to spark dialogue. With immersive design, haunting soundscapes, and a staging that pulls audiences into the action, Cuentos de Miedo y Otras Pendejadas becomes more than performance—it becomes an experience. The performance is played in Spanish.

Cast: Maga Cedeño, Yvanhova Figueroa, Alessia Secli, Jhonatan Zapata García, Luis Viñoles, and José Gregorio Araujo (“El Gordo Bello”) as La Bruja. Creative Team: John McGee (scenery and lighting design), Jonny Rueda (set treatment & decoration), Percy Van Oordt (makeup & hair), Kim Sánchez (sound), Oswaldo Ortiz (sound design/editing), Jorge Tagliaferro (stage manager), and Pilar Cordova (production manager). Created & directed by choreographer and artistic director Elliott Ortiz.

Presented in co-production with Dance 10 Project and El Barrio’s Artspace, with the support of Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC), UMEZ, and collaboration of B.I.P. & Frenzy Fest 25'

• Performances: Saturday, October 18 at 7:00 PM, and Sunday, October 19 at 5:00 PM
• Location: The Black Box Theater at El Barrio’s Artspace, East Harlem, New York
• Tickets : Eventbrite : Cuentos de miedo y otras pendejadas ( https://www.eventbrite.com/e/c... )   or   https://d10projectnyc.org/