101 Plays by The New Americans, or on Latinidad

A couple of realizations have emerged from the National Gathering of the Latina/o Theatre Commons in Boston. Among them are two that pertain specifically to the knowledge and accessibility of Latina/o plays.  We recognize that: 1. There is a great need for a catalog or list of Latina/o works for the general public, and 2. we need to determine which plays we presently consider to be influential works to us as theater makers.

We conducted a survey, soliciting and receiving dozens of submissions. We also created a word-cloud that highlighted the names of the individuals and plays which inspired us as well as works that should be included in the canon of great dramas.

From this survey I created a list of 101 works, most of which were gleaned from the survey, but others that readers may not have read or heard of. Ideally, this is a list that needs to be made widely accessible to educators, theater practitioners, and students. The works range from commercial successes to rare and deeply personal plays that need to be rediscovered and reexamined.

In other words, this is a list of plays that educators, theater practitioners, and students should have access to. I believe these 101 works mark only the beginning of a comprehensive survey of the great dramas that resonate and connect with Latina/o theater makers and those who appreciate their impact and influence. Most plays listed here are published; however, some like Tatiana Suárez-Pico’s Flesh and Blood, Law Chávez’s Señora de la Pinta, and Christina Hjelm’s Casualties of Dreams and Sand still await publication and productions. The works are made by, for and with Latina/os, but not always all three at the same time. Although the list is confined to only one drama by each of the 101 playwrights, many on the list have also written a number of other powerful plays on the Latino experience. 

There are plays which were misunderstood by critics, such as Raul Castíllo’s Knives and Other Sharp Objects, a gem of a play, and Alejandro Morales’ marea, a poetic dream play that are yearning for rediscovery. There are plays that have pushed the boundaries of what constitutes a Latina/o aesthetic, like Quiara Alegría Hudes’ Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue and Luis Alfaro’s Oedipus El Rey. And there are works that celebrate the complexities and contradictions of who we are as a multidimensional group living in the U.S. today, including but not limited to Lemon Andersen’s County of Kings, Nilaja Sun’s No Child…, and Lackawanna Blues by Ruben Santiago-Hudson.

We recognize that: 1. There is a great need for a catalog or list of Latina/o works for the general public, and 2. we need to determine which plays we presently consider to be influential works to us as theater makers.

A few important things to consider:

Just as one play does not define a playwright, nor represent an entire culture, neither does this list intend to define or represent “Latina/o theater.” It is also not a ‘greatest hits’ type of list; rather, these are works that resonate and therefore serve as an invitation for further exploration. Take every opportunity to read a work from the list and see what inspires you to go in search of additional works by the same author or theme. There are connections amongst these plays that I had no idea existed until I started to put it all together. I was struck by how “honor” (a theme which holds great weight from the plays of Golden Age Spain) connects the plight of Mexican day laborers in Michael John Garcés’ Los Illegals, to the steadfast Cuban protagonist of Eduardo Machado’s The Cook, to Papo & Lulu’s journeys towards redemption in El Grito del Bronx by Migdalia Cruz.

Secondly, Latinidad is difficult to define. This list resists ranking or canonization of the works. Rather, the plays are listed in alphabetical order by title. Despite the fact that many of us are deeply influenced by work by such authors as Lorca, Lope de Vega, Calderon de la Barca, Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, among others, their works are not included on this list. The intent was to include plays that have had significant impact on U.S. artists and audiences alike, but do not receive the level of attention or circulation given to European or Northern Hemispheric works.

Finally, it bears repeating there is no litmus test for what Latinidad is. We are not a singular identity nor static in nature. I expect that over time—as was expressed at the Latina/o Theatre Commons National Gathering—the term “Latinidad” may evolve into another thing altogether. In 2046, when Latina/os become the majority in the U.S. no one knows whether or not we’ll still be constrained by geopolitical boundaries, language and skin color. But today, in examining these works, my hope is that we will begin to understand the breadth of our universal humanity.

As affirmed at the Convening, we are The New Americans.

So without further ado, here is the list. Feel free to chime in with your thoughts or favorites in the comments below. And I apologize for any omissions in advance.

Adelante!

1. 7, Eight, 9 by Joe Luis Cedillo
2. American Night: The Ballad of Juan José by Richard Montoya
3. Anna in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz
4. Ashes of Light by Marco Antonio Rodríguez
5. Aurora by Leonard Madrid
6. Based On A Totally True Story by Roberto Aguirre-Sacása
7. Basilica by Mando Alvarado
8. BIG BRO / lil bro by Jonathan Ceniceroz
9. Blade to the Heat by Oliver Mayer
10. Boxcar by Silvia Gonzalez S.
11. blu by Virginia Grise
12. Broadsword by Marco Ramirez
13. Bruising for Besos by Adelina Anthony
14. Café Vida by Lisa Loomer
15. Cascarones by Irma Mayorga
16. Casualties of Dreams and Sand by Christina Hjelm
17. Chimichangas and Zoloft by Fernanda Coppel
18. Claudia Meets Fulano Colorado by Joann Farías
19. The Conduct of Life by María Irene Fornes
20. The Cook by Eduardo Machado
21. County of Kings by Lemon Andersen
22. Dark Play, or Stories for Boys by Carlos Muríllo
23. Daughter of a Cuban Revolutionary by Marissa Chibas
24. Earthquake Chica by Anne García-Romero
25. Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue by Quiara Alegría Hudes
26. Empanada for a Dream by Juan Villa
27. Entries by Bernardo Solano
28. The Smartest Girl in the World by Miriam Gonzalez
29. Exit, Cuckoo (nanny in motherland) by Lisa Ramírez
30. Fish Men by Cándido Tirado
31. Flesh and Blood by Tatiana Suárez-Pico
32. Floridita, My Love by Javierantonio González
33. Fukú Americanus (adapted from Junot Díaz's 'The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao') by Sean San José & Campo Santo
34. Ghost Light by Desi Moreno-Penson
35. Greetings From A Queer Señorita by Monica Palácios
36. El Grito del Bronx by Migdalia Cruz
37. Guapa by Caridad Svich
38. Heart Shaped Nebula by Marisela Treviño Orta
39. Las Hermanas Padilla by Tony Meneses
40. Highway 47 by KJ Sanchez
41. The Hungry Woman: A Mexican Medea by Cherríe Moraga
42. Los Illegals by Michael John Garcés
43. Illuminating Veronica by Rogelio Martínez
44. I Was The Voice of Democracy by Brian Herrera
45. The Inquisitor by Magdalena Gómez
46. Johnny Tenorio by Carlos Morton
47. Julia by Carmen Rivera
48. Kissing Che by Augusto Federíco Amador
49. Kita y Fernanda by Tanya Saracho
50. Knives and Other Sharp Objects by Raul Castíllo
51. Lackawanna Blues by Ruben Santiago-Hudson
52. The Lady from Havana by Luís Santeiro
53. Landlocked by Cusi Cram
54. Latins Anonymous by Latins Anonymous (Luisa Leschin, Armando Molina, Rick Najera, Diane Rodriguez)
55. Learn to be Latina by Enríque Urueta
56. Light of Night by Cecilia Copeland
57. La Llorona, A Love Story by Kathleen Anderson Culebro
58. Lydia by Octavio Solís
59. maelstrom by Christopher Oscar Peña
60. Mambo Mouth by John Leguizamo
61. marea by Alejandro Morales
62. Mariela in the Desert by Karen Zacarías
63. Men on the Verge of a His-Panic Breakdown by Guillermo Reyes
64. My Visits With MGM (My Grandmother Marta) by Edít Villarreal
65. No Child… by Nilaja Sun
66. Oedipus El Rey by Luís Alfaro
67. Pinkolandia by Andrea Thome
68. Placas by Paul S. Flores
69. Quality by Elaine Avila
70. Radio Mambo by Culture Clash (Richard Montoya, Ric Salinas, and Herbert Sigüenza)
71. Real Women Have Curves by Josefína López
72. The Re-discovery of America by the Warrior for Gringostroika by Guillermo Gomez-Peña and Coco Fusco
73. References to Salvador Dalí Make Me Hot by José Rivera
74. The Reincarnation of Jaime Brown by Lynne Alvarez
75. Roosters by Milcha Sánchez-Scott
76. The Ruin by Georgina Escobar
77. La Ruta by Ed Cardona, Jr.
78. Señora de la Pinta by Law Chávez
79. September Shoes by José Cruz González
80. Seven Spots on the Sun by Martín Zimmerman
81. Short Eyes by Miguel Piñero
82. Single Wet Female by Marga Gómez and Carmelita Tropicana (a.k.a. Alína Troyano)
83. Sissy by Ricardo Brácho
84. Skin (an adaptation of Buchner’s WOYZECK) by Naomi Iizuka
85. so go the ghosts of méxico, part one by Matthew Paul Olmos
86. Solitude by Evelína Fernandez
87. Somewhere by Matthew López
88. Sonia Flew by Melinda López
89. Swipe, Tap and Touch by Maria Alexandria Beech
90. Taking Flight by Adriana Seván
91. Tight Embrace by Jorge Ignacio Cortiñas
92. Trafficking in Broken Hearts by Edwin Sánchez
93. Under a Western Sky by Amparo Garcia-Crow
94. underneathmybed by Florencia Lozano
95. La Vida Loca by Carlos Manuel
96. Vieques by Jorge Gonzalez
97. Welcome to Arroyo’s by Kristoffer Díaz
98. Wetback by Elaine Romero
99. When El Cucuí Walks by Roy Conboy
100. Wild in Wichita by Lina Gallegos
101. Zoot Suit by Luis Valdez