Carnaval At DePaul

This July The Theatre School hosted the Latina/o Theatre Commons (LTC) Carnaval: a festival of new Latina/o playwrights.  Online platform HowlRound helped to produce. It was such an honor to be part of a school that provided a temporary home for hundreds of theatre artists to come together and celebrate these 12 new plays.

See an article in American Theatre that includes an interview with Lisa Portes, TTS faculty member.

As a volunteer for this event, the highlight of my experience was reading stage directions for Matthew Paul Olmos's new play, the living'life of the daughter Mira: a brave script with a new perspective on teen pregnancy. Lazaro completes a transformation to adulthood and responsibility in order to care for his newborn daughter Mira. Through poetry, comedy, and tension, the characters surrounding baby Mira voice their opinions about what is best for her, although the ephemeral and ghost-like Mira character is watching them all. The special bond between unborn Mira and Lazaro at the beginning of the play is touching and honest and charmingly important for young men to watch. (Also snaps to strong female characters and a script that passes the Bechdel Test.)  It was an honor to work with such a warm and talented group of people: (left to right) Charin Alvarez, myself, Miguel Nunez, Wesley Toledo, Isabel Quintero, and Andrea Morales.

Meeting theatre artists within Chicago and from all over the country renews one's sense of community. This diverse group of theatre makers had a lot to say and teach each other which I got to witness through the readings themselves, organized Cafécitos for discussion, and evening events with performances.

Another remarkable feature of the event was receiving a USB drive with 60 new plays all written by featured Latina/o playwrights. I am excited to delve into these scripts over the next few weeks and become more educated about a writing community that is claiming its rightful place in our theatre world.


Did you attend LTC Carnaval? What was your favorite part?