This Has (No) Name

Mario Barrantes Espinoza is an artist of Costa Rican-Nicaraguan heritage, residing between San José and Brussels. A graduated of P.A.R.T.S. (Training Cycle, 2016; Research Studios, 2018), his work activates questions around space, embodiment, and voice, engaging performance as a cross-format encounter. As a performer, he has collaborated with artists such as François Chaignaud, Théo Mercier, Benjamin Abel Meirhaeghe, Michiel Vandevelde, and Eszter Salamon, as well as in music contexts with bands including Peaches, The Subs, and the instrumental–vocal ensemble La Tempête.

Currently, Mario develops projects as an independent artist. His end-of-studies work, Drift (I), was selected by various international festivals, including the Aerowaves dance platform (2019). His first full-length creation, El cantar del playo or… a song is a rose is a thorn (2022), received the Roel Verniers Prize (BE, 2020) from Het Theaterfestival, which recognizes creative ideas and new talent in the performing arts. His most recent work, FLESH CAN’T CAN’T NOT’T ‘TIS FLESH H… (2024), premiered at Kaaitheater and is currently on international tour, performed at Alkantara Festival (Portugal) and Theater Rotterdam (The Netherlands).

Alongside his stage works, Mario organizes two party-based gatherings that open alternatives for performance out of institutional frameworks. With APOLEMIA and CULO SHAKING NIGHT, he explores the club dance floor as a site for performance.

Mario is also a mentor and recurrent guest teacher in institutions such as P.A.R.T.S., the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Ghent (Kask), and the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp, understanding pedagogy as a reciprocal part of his artistic practice.