The Larva

A physical and aural performance examining themes of violence and disappearance

Maria Gabriela Rubio Hernandez

Elaine Mitchener

María Gabriela Rubio Hernández is a Colombian composer, playwright, and performer. Her project The Larva merges electroacoustic music, sound poetry, and tactile materials such as mud, dirt, and hair, reflecting on how the earth decomposes, consumes, and silences the body.

The work examines themes of violence and disappearance, engaging physically and sonically with these elements with recordings of earth, water, and the body. Fragments of poetry, meanwhile, are reinterpreted as sonic gestures.

A key element of the work is the act of ingesting these materials, symbolizing the tension between what is buried and what must be unearthed.

In January, 2026, María Gabriela Rubio Hernández and her mentor, Elaine Mitchener, will convene at Radialsystem for a condensed work-stay to further develop Hernández’s project, and will host a public event there.

The final production of The Larva will be unveiled at the Forecast Festival, in March 2026.