Welcome to “Gender, Race and Performance Across the Americas”! This co-taught bilingual class examines how bodies throughout the Americas articulate race, class, sexuality, ethnicity, and gender. The body serves as a site of negotiation, discipline, and a means of expression and meaning. Drawing from critical race studies, feminist and queer theory, and performance studies, we will unpack how race, gender, and sexuality are constructed and maintained through performance—both on-stage and off.  We will pay special attention to the politics of the body locally and globally. From commemorative performances to interventionist performances, we will wrestle with issues that invite us to think in new ways about gender, race, and the construction of identities across the Americas.