What if today was your birthday? And everyone else’s too?

Happy Unbirthday! is a joyful celebration where we all join the party – wearing birthday hats, singing Happy Birthday, sharing our wishes, and taking turns smashing a giant piñata. No one’s the center of attention – and somehow, everyone is.

At the heart of this playful performance is a handmade piñata, created from recycled materials and filled with messages from previous workshops: memories, dreams, and notes waiting to be passed on. Crack it open and take a message with you – a birthday gift from a stranger.

Happy Unbirthday! was created in the wake of personal grief and rising anxiety around aging and mortality. Birthdays mark time – moments to pause, reflect, wish, and gather. In Mexican culture, the piñata is central to these rituals, fostering communal participation and emotional release. By bridging Mexican, American, and Danish traditions, the work becomes a space for cultural exchange, celebration, and (queer) joy.