Mal Pelo, under its artistic co-directors Pep Ramis and María Muñoz, is a performance creation group whose joint authorship has so far produced over thirty pieces of work. Since 1989, Mal Pelo has developed its own artistic language through movement and compositions that include texts, original sound tracks, live music, set construction, lighting and video design among other tools for the stage.
In performance and the creation of shows, María Muñoz and Pep Ramis have found the ideal place to channel their need to experiment, ask questions and share the themes that are vital to their work.
Shared creation is a distinguishing element of the group. Throughout its career, Mal Pelo has collaborated on projects with artists such as John Berger, Erri de Luca, Lisa Nelson, Àngels Margarit, Steve Noble, Nuria Font, Steve Paxton, Eduard Fernández, Andrés Corchero, Toni Serra, Lilo Baur, Cesc Gelabert, Faustin Linyekula, Raffaella Giordano, Baro D’Evel, Leonor Leal and Marta Izquierdo.
“A continuous workshop on ellipsis, subtraction, absence, hope, provides the backbone of the whole poetic arc of Mal Pelo: their pieces are sleepless nights, the eve of something, fragile conjurings of a presence, motionless hunts.”
“Values have nothing to do with our acquisitions, improvements, conquests, possessions. Our only truth is imperfection. Our history is made up of mistimings. The only value lies in the scar left by our losses. And because the essence of life is failure, someone was right to say that there is dignity in defeat that triumph will never know. Mountains are, when all is said and done, nothing but the scars of a planet that has lived.” Roberto Frattini on Mal Pelo.
The company has received many awards for its work, including the Premi Nacional de Cultura de Catalunya (National Arts Prize of Catalonia), the Premi Ciutat de Barcelona (City of Barcelona Prize) and the Premio Nacional de Cultura (National Arts Prize) for its work both in choreographic creation and in opening up new paths in contemporary dance; Gold Medal from La Academia de las Artes Escénicas de España (2022) and Premi Ciutat de Palma 2022 Margaluz de las Artes Escénicas.
Mal Pelo is the driving force behind, and resident company at, L’animal a l’Esquena, a creation centre located at Mas Espolla in Celrà (Gerona), based around residencies and communication between artists and creators. This space, surrounded by woods, fields, olive groves and vineyards, is a crucible of curiosity, inspiration and enrichment for Mal Pelo, with its constant coming and going of creators and the synergies that arise from this.