Hope: Part II of A Mexican Trilogy introduced Gina, Betty, Johnny and Bobby as teenagers in the 60's. In Part III they are adults living in California where they moved at the end of Part II. Johnny was drafted and went to Vietnam and returned a damaged soul who in 2005 (when Part III takes place) is an outcast; Bobby is "out" in a big way; Betty has been married four times and is still looking for love; and Gina is still married to her high school sweet heart, Rudy, but, their son has just died in Iraq. Nana, who was not seen in Part II, but whose influence and power was felt throughout, is now over a hundred years old and lives with Gina, Rudy and their daughter, Valentina. Nana lives between the world of the living and the world of the dead and refuses to die... for various reasons. Sounds very serious, I know, and it is. But, the story is told through humor, drama, music, movement. All the stuff we include in all of our work. More about the story later...
The process...
We've had a few readings of the play over the last two years. Now, the company (Latino Theater Company of which I've been a part of for over 25 years. Visit our Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Latino-Theater-Company/19850403322 and I'll talk more about the company at another time) is getting together and exploring music, movement, and elements we will need to tell the story. We've been listening to 70's music, Led Zepplin's Stairway to Heaven and Whole lotta Love to get a feel for the world after the 60's and after the Vietnam War, the assassinations of MLK and then of RFK, the March on Washington, the Chicano Moratorium, Desert Storm, the wars in Afghanistan and Irag... Music and movement are an integral part of our work and so we usually get together with the company, our director and choreographer to fool around and explore stuff before the cast begins rehearsals.
Things are moving quickly. Ofelia Medina arrives on April 20th from Mexico City to play the role of the matriarch of the family, Esperanza, who is over 100 years old. She is an amazing actor and an icon in Mexico not only for her acting but for her activism in defense of the indigenous communities in Mexico. For more info about Ofelia go to her website: http://www.ofeliamedina.com/index-english.html. I am so honored that she will be working with us...
The musical director, Ricardo Ochoa, is coming in from Mexico as well and we have final call-backs on Monday. We open on May 11th with previews beginning on May 5th - yikes, just a month away! To purchase tickets go to www.thelatc.org.
