Contributed photo
Contributed photo
Issued the following announcement on Aug.2
4th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival plans to return this fall with live performances, September 23-October 17, 2021.
“After taking a year off due to the pandemic, Destinos, Chicago’s annual citywide international Latino theater festival, is back!” said Myrna Salazar, Executive Director, Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA). “Please be sure to join us this fall. It’s been too long, and now more than ever, it’s time to come together to share the Latino experience as told by Latino artists and companies from Chicago, the U.S. and Latin America.”
For four weeks this fall, Chicagoans and visitors alike will experience a rich, diverse array of Latino-themed shows, panels and student performances at marquee venues downtown, neighborhood theaters and cultural institutions throughout the city.
Collectively, the local Latino theater community will represent host city Chicago with five exciting productions: American Mariachi, a Midwest Premiere about an all-women Mariachi band presented by Goodman Theatre; Brujaja, a World Premiere live/virtual production about an “accidental witch” by UrbanTheater Company; and, La Gran Tirana: Descarga dramática, a World Premiere play with music inspired by La Lupe, the Queen of Latin Soul, at Aguijón Theater.
Two local companies will make their Destinos debut: Visión Latino Theatre Company with the World Premiere Y tú abuela, where is she?, about an interracial couple given the chance to choose the color of their unborn child, and Teatro Tariakuri with La manera como luces esta noche, an adults-only, Latino fairy tale.
Out-of-town productions (at press time) include Amal, in which Miami’s Combat Hippies fuses spoken word with music to examine the impact of war; Tijuana via Mexico City’s Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol, about the true story of a man who abandoned his life in the city to work for minimum wage at the U.S. border; Santurce, Puerto Rico-based Agua, Sol y Sereno with Corazón de Papel, a powerful depiction of post-Hurricane Maria Puerto Rico told through contemporary puppetry, and Mal de Amores, about an old man who tells his love stories as a woman with a wonderful, powerful voice sings boleros, baladas and rancheras, from Casa de Teatro in the Dominican Republic.
Performer and director Lázaro Gabino Rodríguez of Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol, Mexico City blurs the line between fiction and reality in Tijuana, about a man from the city who takes a job at a sweatshop near the U.S. border. Tijuana makes it Chicago premiere September 23-26 at the National Museum of Mexican Art as part of Destinos-4th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival.
Photo credit: Manuel G. Vicente courtesy Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol.
Mal de Amores, about an old man who tells love stories as a woman sings boleros, baladas and rancheras, comes to Destinos-4th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival via Casa de Teatro in the Dominican Republic. Photo credit: Pedro Bonilla.
Destinos is the signature program of the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance, a transformative cultural engine helping drive Chicago’s local Latino theater community to newfound prominence.
“Despite the 18-month ‘intermission’ we all just had, CLATA has remained very active behind the scenes, supporting our amazing community of Latino theater artists while planning a high-profile platform for their return to live theater this fall,” said Marty Castro, CLATA Board Chairperson and President and CEO of Casa Central. “So we are excited to announce that Destinos is back this September! We are ready to celebrate the joy and healing power of Latino theater with audiences who are hungry to reconnect with live art and the world around them.”
Tickets to this year’s Destinos will go on sale in late August. Stay tuned for more exciting festival updates. Visit clata.org for tickets, show dates, times, locations and information about the artists.
Note: CLATA and its partner venues will adhere to all COVID-19 safety precaution protocols as mandated by the state of Illinois throughout the festival. Specific Covid policies for each venue will be shared with ticket buyers prior to their performances.
To receive all festival news, sign up for the Destinos weekly e-update, and follow CLATA at @latinotheater on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
AMAL by Miami’s Combat Hippies examines the impact of war with equal parts humor and urgency. AMAL makes it Chicago premiere September 30-October 3 at Chopin Theatre as part of Destinos-4th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival. Photo credit Romaine Maurice.
More about the shows
Chicago productions (at press time):
American Mariachi
Midwest Premiere
Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn Ave. in downtown Chicago
September 18-October 24
Meet Lucha, who spends her days caring for her ailing mother, but longs to shake up her 1970s home life. When a forgotten record album sparks her mother’s memory, Lucha and her cousin strike upon a radical idea: to create an all-female mariachi band. Infused with live mariachi music, this “big-hearted, musical tug at the heartstrings” reveals how music and love can make just about anything possible (Denver Post). American Mariachi is written by José Cruz González, directed by Henry Godinez and features Chicago's Sones de México Ensemble. Presented in English with sprinkles of Spanish.
La manera como luces esta noche
World Premiere
Teatro Tariakuri
3117 W. 63rd St. in Marquette Park
September 25-October 17
Once upon a time, in a faraway land, there lived a King whose precious daughter Beatriz needed to be betrothed. But the king’s wish is suddenly shattered by an invasion of a peculiar handmaiden/soldier. Ubaldo the welder falls in love with the princess, but being not of noble blood, seeks the help of a wizard to meet the princess. Hilarious entanglements ensue as Ubaldo discovers how to win the princess and not to be hanged in the process. This comedic fairy tale, for adults only, is written by Alejandro Licona and directed by Karla Galván.
Brujaja
World Premiere
UrbanTheater Company
at the National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture
1852 W 19th St. in Pilsen
October 9 and 10
After living above her mother's botánica her whole life, Ifé, an accidental witch, finally finds her purpose by tapping into her ancestral power to fight the larger fight against oppression and wellness. Written by Melissa DuPrey and directed by Miranda González, Brujaja will be a hybrid experience pairing live theater, dance and drumming for in-person audiences with a theatrically filmed virtual stream for viewing at home. Presented in English with sprinkles of Spanish.
Y tú abuela, where is she?
World Premiere
Vision Latino Theatre Company
at The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Wicker Park
Opens Monday, October 11
Runs October 14-24
An interracial couple, Xavier and Adalina, are accepted into a program that allows them to modify the genes of their children before they are born. Excitement over the prospect of altering their offspring helps them forget the issues that plague their relationship, until they get stuck on one question: what color skin should the child have? As they navigate the answers, bigger problems are exposed and divine intervention may be needed for the entire family to survive. Y tú abuela, where is she? is written by Nelson Diaz-Marcano and directed by Xavier M. Custodio. Presented in English and Spanish.
La Gran Tirana: Descarga dramática
World Premiere
Aguijón Theater
2707 N. Laramie in Belmont-Cragin
Opens Friday, October 15
Runs October 16-November 21
This exciting new work is inspired by the incomparable Afro-Cuban legend Lupe Victoria Yolí Raymond, better known as La Lupe, the Queen of Latin Soul. This love letter to Caribbean rhythms and sounds explores the journey of Ana Morgana, an immigrant, a castoff, but, above all, an artist, who transcends her everyday reality by imagining herself a star: La Lupe. La Gran Tirana was conceived and is directed by Sándor Menéndez, written by Rey Andújar, and features Ana Santos Sanchez, Sándor Menéndez and pianist Adrian Ruiz. Presented in Spanish with English subtitles.
National and international productions (at press time):
Tijuana
Chicago Premiere
Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol, Mexico City
Presented at National Museum of Mexican Art, 1852 W. 19th St. in Pilsen
September 23-26
Mixing video art and a sculptural stage environment with piercingly poetic text, Tijuana blurs the line between fiction and reality, using multimedia as mechanisms to link work and life and give voice to overlooked moments in social and political history. With movement and text, performer and director Lázaro Gabino Rodríguez depicts a man’s social experiment in which he mysteriously appears as a resident of a new neighborhood with a new sweatshop job and a secret history. Tijuana asks: What does democracy mean in Mexico today for some 50 million people living on the minimum wage? What do we expect from democracy today? What do we expect from politics beyond democracy? Presented in Spanish with English subtitles.
Performer and director Lázaro Gabino Rodríguez of Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol, Mexico City in Tijuana.
Photo credit: Manuel G. Vicente courtesy Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol.
AMAL
Chicago Premiere
Combat Hippies, Miami
Presented at Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division St. in Wicker Park
September 30-October 3
AMAL examines the impact of war with equal parts humor and urgency. It explores the quest for meaning, purpose and identity sought through enlisting in the military and shares the unifying experiences of combatants and noncombatants as people of color. Tough and tender, AMAL relays stories of how veterans, refugees and civilians adjusted to life after war, placing Puerto Rico’s colonial status, cultural and military heritage center stage. AMAL is written by Combat Hippies and Teo Castellanos and directed by Teo Castellanos. Presented in English.
Tough and tender, AMAL by Miami’s Combat Hippies examines the impact of war with equal parts humor and urgency. Photo credit: Romaine Maurice.
Mal de Amores
Midwest Premiere
Casa de Teatro, Dominican Republic
October 8-10
An old man tells his love stories as a woman with a wonderful, powerful voice sings boleros, baladas and rancheras. Mal de Amores is a fusion of storytelling, song and two talented artists: Freddy Ginebra, whose true life experiences transform into beautiful stories, and Diomary Castillo, who takes audiences breath away with her energy and alluring voice. Mal de Amores is written and directed by Ginebra. Presented in Spanish.
Mal de Amores features Freddy Ginebra (right, both photos) whose true life experiences transform into beautiful love stories, and Diomary Castillo (left), who takes audiences breath away with her energy and alluring voice. Photo credit: Pedro Bonilla
Corazón de Papel
Chicago Premiere
Agua, Sol y Sereno, Santurce, Puerto Rico
Presented at Chopin Theatre, 1543 W. Division St. in Wicker Park
October 14-17
Corazón de Papel is a powerful new depiction of post-Hurricane Maria Puerto Rico told through contemporary puppetry. This 11-member, multigenerational Puerto Rican theater collective is internationally acclaimed for its deep social and human commitment and its dynamic brand of popular, experimental performances featuring colorful and iconic costumes, set pieces and “cabezudos,” or giant papier mâché heads.
Corazón de Papel by Puerto Rico's Agua, Sol y Sereno is a powerful new depiction of Puerto Rico, post-Hurricane Maria, told through contemporary puppetry. Credit: George Riveron
CLATA is thrilled to return to a live, multi-week, international festival in 2021, and gratefully acknowledges generous support from The Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The Joyce Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The Walder Foundation, The Arts Work Fund, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation, Illinois Humanities, The Shubert Foundation, a CityArts grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Illinois Arts Council Agency, National Endowment for the Arts, Wintrust, Allstate, ComEd and Comcast/Xfinity.
About the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA)
Now entering its fourth year, Destinos is the signature program of the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA), a transformative cultural engine helping drive the city’s local Latino theater community to a more prominent level.
“In Spanish, the word 'destinos' has multiple meanings: destinies, destinations or fate,” explains Myrna Salazar, Executive Director, Chicago Latino Theater Alliance. “Destinos showcases Latino theater artists from Chicago, across the U.S. and Latin America to present engaging and thought-provoking stories that transcend boundaries, amplify Latino voices, and diversify Chicago stages to encourage cross-cultural conversation.”
The first Destinos in 2017 ran five weeks, and presented 61 performances by 10 companies from Chicago, U.S. and Latin America. In 2018, the festival expanded to six weeks, with 81 performances by 14 companies, engaging approximately 10,000 people, including nearly 700 students who attended matinee performances and participated in post-show discussions with artists, directors and playwrights. Destinos returned in year three with six more weeks of highly attended, critically acclaimed local, national and international programs, with a special contingent of U.S. and international programmers brought in to view the work of Chicago’s top Latino companies. Last fall, CLATA responded to the pandemic by postponing the full festival and instead staged one of Chicago’s first outdoor public art events, Destinos al Aire, a one-night celebration of Latino theater, music and dance presented under the stars to a sold-out crowd at ChiTown Movies.
CLATA was founded in 2016 as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization by Myrna Salazar and Chicago’s three most prominent Latino arts organizations: National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA), International Latino Cultural Center (ILCC), and Puerto Rican Arts Alliance (PRAA), with the generous support of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
CLATA’s goal is to create the country’s leading international Latino theater festival with an emphasis on showcasing Chicago Latino theater artists and companies. Additionally, CLATA provides local groups ongoing organizational, marketing and financial support, and works diligently to create a permanent home for Chicago’s Latino theater artists. Ultimately, CLATA strives to underscore Chicago’s reputation as one of the most exciting and culturally diverse theater cities in the world.
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