CASA HECHALE INTERNATIONAL ARTIST RESIDENCY
Mexico City · Theatre, Film & Performance
Two- and Four-Week Residencies · Partial Scholarships Available

Centro Cultural Casa Hechale invites applications from artists working across theatre, performance, film, writing, movement, design and interdisciplinary practice for its International Artist Residency Programme in Mexico City.

Located in Santa María la Ribera, Casa Hechale is an independent cultural centre where artists can live, work and develop new material within an active environment for theatre, performance, research and artistic exchange.

The residency offers two- or four-week periods for research, writing, rehearsal, experimentation and the development of new or existing work. Artists may arrive with a project already in progress, an early-stage enquiry, a text that needs time in the room, a performance methodology they want to investigate, or a question that requires sustained attention.

A finished production or public presentation is not required.

AREAS OF PRACTICE
The programme welcomes individual artists, duos and small collaborative teams working in:

Theatre & Live Performance
Devised theatre, solo performance, live art, comedy, puppetry and performance development.

Acting & Directing
Research and practical exploration for stage or screen, including character, text, scene work, rehearsal methods and performance practice.

Playwriting, Screenwriting & Dramaturgy
Original writing, adaptation, translation, revision and dramaturgical research for stage and screen.

Dance, Movement & Choreography
Choreographic development, physical theatre, improvisation and research through the body.

Film, Moving Image & Sound
Film development, experimental moving image, sound-based work and projects exploring relationships between image, sound and live performance.

Stage, Costume Design & Scenography
Research and concept development across space, costume, projection, objects and design for performance.

Visual & Interdisciplinary Arts
Installation, visual research and projects connecting the body, live action, space, image and other artistic disciplines.

LIVE AND WORK AT CASA HECHALE
Resident Artists stay within the cultural centre for the full residency period. Accommodation is available in either a private single room or a shared twin room, with shared bathrooms and kitchen facilities.

Artists have scheduled access to Casa Hechale’s working spaces according to the needs of their project, including:

Black Box Theatre — for movement, staging, rehearsal and performance experimentation
Rehearsal and Reading Rooms — for writing, research, script work and collaborative practice
Front Gallery — for visual, installation and interdisciplinary research
Salón CHÁ — for readings, artist conversations and small presentations
Patio and communal areas — for informal exchange and shared time within the resident community

ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT
The residency combines independent working time with structured artistic dialogue.

Residents receive two individual sessions per week:

Project Development — a working conversation with the Casa Hechale creative team around material in development, current experiments and next steps.

Artistic Dialogue — an individual exchange with an artistic adviser, offering another perspective on creative choices, methods and possible directions for the work.

A four-week residency therefore includes eight individual sessions; a two-week residency includes four.

Residents retain full creative direction of their work.

Selected performances, readings, workshops, exhibitions, artist conversations and community gatherings may also take place during each residency cycle. Participation is optional and varies according to the centre’s programme.

Each cycle includes an informal Casa Hechale Open House, where residents may share a fragment, experiment, reading, screening, performance excerpt or question with fellow artists and invited practitioners. There is no requirement to present finished work.

MEXICO CITY & INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE
Casa Hechale is based in Santa María la Ribera, Mexico City, and the city forms an important context for the residency.

Where relevant to a project, the team may facilitate introductions to artists, performers, filmmakers, writers, researchers and cultural organisations working in Mexico City.

With the support of Hechale Productions, Casa Hechale develops artistic exchange across Mexico, the United States and the wider international community. Exchange across languages, theatrical traditions and working methods is central to the programme, with particular attention to Mexico–U.S. artistic dialogue, including Latinx and Chicano perspectives.

Casa Hechale is a Member Organization of Artist Communities Alliance (ACA).

RESIDENCY PERIODS
WINTER 2026/27
December 2026–January 2027
Application deadline: October 30, 2026

EARLY SPRING 2027
February–March 2027
Application deadline: December 30, 2026

SPRING 2027
April–May 2027
Application deadline: February 28, 2027

Artists may apply for either a Two-Week or Four-Week Residency and indicate preferred and alternative dates in the application.

Programme capacity is limited to six Resident Artists per cycle.

PROGRAMME FEES
Two-Week Residency / 14 nights

Shared twin room — USD 1,300 per artist
Private single room — USD 1,900 per artist

Includes accommodation, scheduled access to working spaces, four individual sessions with the creative team and artistic advisers, residency coordination and participation in selected programme activities.

Four-Week Residency / 28 nights

Shared twin room — USD 2,100 per artist
Private single room — USD 2,800 per artist

Includes accommodation, scheduled access to working spaces, eight individual sessions with the creative team and artistic advisers, residency coordination and participation in selected programme activities.

Additional technical personnel, equipment, performers and production services are not included unless separately agreed.

SCHOLARSHIPS & FUNDING
A limited number of Casa Hechale Residency Scholarships are available for selected artists undertaking the Four-Week Residency, providing a programme fee reduction of up to USD 700.

Artists born in Latin America who currently live and maintain their artistic practice in the region may also be considered for the Latin America Residency Fund, providing additional support of up to USD 500.

Where applicable, the two forms of support may be combined for a maximum programme fee reduction of USD 1,200.

Financial support is competitive and subject to artistic review and available funding. Selection for the residency does not guarantee a scholarship.

Artists may also use external grants, institutional funding or other sources of support. Following selection and provisional confirmation of residency dates, Casa Hechale can provide an official selection letter for applications to arts councils, universities, cultural institutions, foundations and other funding bodies.

ELIGIBILITY
Applications are open to artists worldwide and at all career stages.

Working languages are English and Spanish. Applicants do not need to speak both languages but should be able to work in at least one.

Applications are reviewed in relation to:

artistic enquiry and practice;
the purpose and timing of the proposed residency;
relationship between the project and Casa Hechale’s facilities and programme;
feasibility within the proposed residency period; and
the potential value of artistic dialogue and exchange.

Both early-stage investigations and projects already in development are welcome.

Centro Cultural Casa Hechale
Santa María la Ribera · Mexico City
programs@hechaleproductions.com

Full programme information and application are available through the Casa Hechale Artist Residency page.