How does the theater address societal issues with its programs?
The fact that we’re doing ethnically identified theater automatically puts an aesthetic and sociopolitical lens on the work. We’re coming from an ethnic point of view. We’re really careful about picking our season – the mix of productions. How are we addressing what’s going on? One example is this year’scarpa del ausente, which was presented during the annual El Dia de Los Muertos Festival (Day of the Dead). Way back when, carpas were the people’s theater. People didn’t have time to stop what they’re doing middle of the day, so theater came to them by way of a Vaudeville traveling show. In addition to being raucous and wild, the message is also often very political. In 2006, our carpa focused on immigration issues. This season our carpa honored soldiers, as a commentary on current conflicts. The setting was in the 1940s, during World War II. We want to move the art with the message. In early 2008, we will present Zapatista, a work that seeks to illuminate the issue of indigenous rights
