They All Sleep at Siesta Time 

Photo (c) Daniel Acosta

Published in The Methuen Drama Book of Contemporary Uruguayan Plays, 2025. 

Winner of the 2019 Uruguayan Ministry of Education and Culture National Literature Award.

In a bid to save the life of an endangered armadillo run over in their rural village, two friends steal a tractor from the local brothel and head off to the city, picking up a third girl along the way. But as the sun beats down, the tractor overheats and breaks down, and the animal loses blood, the unlikely fugitives face a race against time. Before long, the three companions are embroiled in a spree of misadventure, with an increasing body count and fresh injuries (but still time for a football match). When arriving at the hospital fails to yield the desired result of medical attention, the girls are forced once again to take matters (and a stolen motorbike) into their own hands. A road trip like no other, but one that goes all but unnoticed: in the heat of the afternoon sun, barely anyone else is awake: They All Sleep at Siesta Time.

A white gust springs up lightly, The Younger Girl watches, turns her head stunned glued to the spot, forgets for a moment to hold on. Tries to tighten her grip but it slips cuts her burns slightly. The friction immediate blister and a loud bang second.

Armadillo breaks forcefully away a Trinidad-registered four-by-four strikes its body at top speed leaving it barely alive.

Nothing happens.

The engine at full speed.

The girls’ vision flooded with a cloud of dust.

Contact me for more details. 

Back to translation page.