Latina

Press Release 10/20/2016

Cal State LA Department of Music, Theatre and Dance presents ‘Latina’ by Milcha Sanchez- Scott

Cal State LA undergraduate and graduate students breathe new life into this multicultural social drama

LOS ANGELES (Oct. 24, 2016) — The Department of Music, Theatre and Dance at Cal State LA provides audiences with an honest outlook  at the adversities of undocumented women searching for opportunities in America with Latina, a play by the award-winning playwright Milcha Sanchez-Scott. 

Cal State LA’s Professor Stephen Rothman directs a spirited, mostly female cast in the university’s 350-seat State Playhouse.

Set in Los Angeles in 1980, the lead character is a young actress who is frustrated  by the pigeonhole that Hollywood has put her in, adding to her struggle of accepting her culture and heritage.  The play highlights core issues that are still highly relevant today in our current political climate, such as women’s rights and the treatment of immigrants.

“It’s exciting to see a play on our mainstage that features so many incredibly strong women’s roles, particularly women of color,” says Rothman. “With the upcoming election, the [play’s themes of] immigration, wages, and the plight of the working poor are allowing our audiences to really see the reality of these complex matters.”

The cast includes: Karen Arana, Lissette Belmontes, Cassandra Britton, Diana Cruz, Rocio Diaz, Verena Forster, Tamara Hamming, Gloria Hernandez, Maricella Ibarra,  Moses Israel, Luciana La Torre, Elizabeth Martinez, Lilyana Melero, Iselle Pena, Marissa Pitts, Khaleana Stell, and Damaris Vizvett and Nina Walker.  Scenic design is by Jeffrey McLaughlin; costume design is by E.B. Brooks; lighting design is by Professor G. Shizuko Herrera; sound design is by Adam Macias; projection/video by JJ Vasquez; and the production stage manager is Rebecca Bermudez.

Originally premiered in 1980, Latina was produced by the New Works Division of Artists in Prison and the Pilot Theater in Los Angeles and went on to earn seven Drama-Logue awards. The socially charged play by Sanchez- Scott is based on her personal experience working as a receptionist  at a domestic agency in Beverly Hills. The play’s protagonist, Sarita, is based on Sanchez-Scott’s own experience with cultural shame and pride. Drawing from literary elements of magical realism, comedy, and drama, Sanchez-Scott illuminates the strife of female domestic workers living in a new and unwelcoming place. Each character is depicted so meticulously that all audiences, Latino and non-Latino alike, can relate to the themes of the play.

Rothman, a founder and former artistic director of the revitalized Pasadena Playhouse and former artistic director of the Sacramento Theatre Company, is currently a professor of theater in the Department of Music, Theatre and Dance at Cal State LA. His directing career has taken him around the world, including a production of Harold Pinter's Betrayal in Florence, Italy, for the Florence International Theatre Company. His American resident/regional theater credits include more than 100 plays in 16 different states for 40 different companies.

Latina runs Friday, Nov. 4, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 5 at 8 p.m.; Sunday, Nov. 6 at 1 p.m.; Wednesday, Nov. 9 and Thursday, Nov. 10, at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Nov. 12 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Performances will take place in the State Playhouse located at 5151 State University Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90032 (on the campus of Cal State LA). For reservations and information, call 323-343-4060 or email [email protected].