By Lilia Trápaga and Tim Hazell

Rituals are an inherent aspect of society and accompany us through our whole existence, marking the passage from one stage to another. These kinds of rituals are institutional and grant us the sense of belonging to a community.  However, there are also others that bring us into an inner realm outside of everyday life. It would seem that in the pragmatic, individualistic and globalized world in which we live, these are becoming less important, and keeping them alive is the endeavor of artists. A spiritual life is inconceivable without ritual.

Theater
Rituales (Rituals)
Based on the poems by Tim Hazell
Grupo El Caldero (The Cauldron)
Jun 20, 21 & 22
8pm
Teatro Santa Ana
Reloj 50-A
100 pesos
Students, teachers and holders of INAPAM cards pay half price.

To celebrate its 10th  anniversary, the theater group El Caldero (The Cauldron), begun by Lilia Trápaga, who has been active in the theater scene in San Miguel for more than two decades, will present Rituals, a completely original and evocative theater production based on poems by the well-known local artist, musician, educator and writer Tim Hazell. There are numerous examples of how the arts are connected and become a source of inspiration and creativity for one another. In this case, poetry became flesh and was transformed into theater by the unique vision of the director. The results are capricious, light-hearted and at times profound.  Rituals will transport the audience on a journey into uncharted waters and nuances.

The show is a bilingual experiment that includes voice effects, choreography and visual elements in an attempt to rediscover ancient theatrical roots. Given his background and contact with Mexican culture, Hazell’s work is permeated with Mesoamerican references. The selected poems allude to the four elements of fire, water, air and earth as well as to rites of propitiation, the giving of thanks and of initiation in which masculine and feminine archetypes, such as Mother Earth and the Warrior, are present.  White magic, dark secrets, melancholy, regret and jubilation surface during each of the four acts.

Rituals has been a labor of love for the writer, director and talented cast.  The chemistry was infectious and would have been impossible without the distinct personalities of each member of the production.

The original English verses will be read to the recorded music of Collar del Viento (The Wind’s Necklace) and “A Forest of Americas.” Collar has delighted audiences as a youth orchestra and workshop with their striking compositions played on ancient instruments from Mexico. “A Forest of Americas” was a landmark presentation for eight ensemble musicians in 2007, part of Pro Musica’s concert series by composers Tim Hazell and Doug Robinson.

An art exhibit of Hazell’s paintings will extend the concept of Rituals into the ambient space of the Café Santa Ana.

Performances will take place at Teatro Santa Ana in La Biblioteca on June 20, 21 and 22 at 8 pm. The admission fee is 100 pesos; students, teachers and holders of INAPAM cards pay half price.

The cast includes Alina Monterrubio, Marcia Armenta, Marisa Ávalos, Juan Elías Robledo, Jesús Ibarra, Francisca Salcedo, José Alberto Romero, Esaú Olalde and Cristina Alfaro. Patrick Johnson Trápaga is in charge of lighting and sound, and Lilia Trápaga directs.

By Henry Vermillion

Overheard conversations can be fascinating. “I have never met a beach bum who is interesting. Their life is devoted to rest.” “Nothing wrong with rest.” “No. And there is nothing wrong with French pate. I do not like it.” Or–“Talk about a dog! Talk about a precious animal! A furry nothing, but ballsy as a paratrooper! Goes after dogs three or four times his size!” These quotes are from several short sketches and monologues by David Mamet which will be presented Wednesday and Thursday, April 17 and 18 at St Paul’s Church on Calle Cardo. Doors open at 7pm, but seating is limited, and playgoers are advised to arrive early to insure seating.

Mamet has “a miraculous ear for the heightened music of American dialect…he makes poetry out of common usage”, wrote critic Clive Barnes. Whether the characters are New Yorkers, Vermonters or Midwesterners, his ear is unerring. He is the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for “Glengarry Glen Ross” and has had many Tony nominations for his plays. He has written and directed several successful films and is universally considered one of our greatest living playwrights. These short pieces were done in between longer efforts, as exercises in form, rhythm and sound “and in truth as emotional meal tickets which would allow me to get through a day not consecrated to some major (longer) project and still think of myself as a writer,” said Mamet. He adds “Some of these three and ten minute plays are the best writing I have ever done…”

So–if you enjoy an occasional eavesdrop, and if you like an evening of off-beat, fascinating talk, you will enjoy these informal moments with David Mamet. Among the players are Jim Newell, Bill Pearlman, Lola Smith, Tom Frazee, B.C. May, Steve Weisberg and Tony Ronci. Nate Fultz does light and sound and Henry Vermillion directs.

By Mark Saunders

In preparation for Diez Minutos, the first-ever San Miguel Festival of 10-Minute Plays, co-producer Michael Hager (MH) interviewed directors Christine Foster (CF), Lauren Osornio (LO), and Kate Rowland (KR):

Theater
“Diez Minutos”
San Miguel’s First International
Festival of 10-Minute Plays
Thu, Apr 11-Sat, Apr 13, 7pm
Shelter Theater
Vicente Guerrero 4
150 pesos

Theater
Special Sunday matinee reading
Sun, Apr 14, 2pm
“Best of the Rest” of San Miguel
Shelter Theater
Vicente Guerrero 4
50 pesos

MH: The eight plays in the Diez Minutos festival vary from the serious to the silly. What do these plays have in common?

CF: I’d say optimism. The themes vary but center around growing self-knowledge with a surprise or revelation in each.

KR: I agree. The plays explore some aspect of our humanity, be it our attempts to connect with others, or our need to know ourselves.

LO: Each play is interesting and most have an unexpected twist. And we have wonderful actors. I think the audience will be both surprised and delighted.

MH: Have you directed, acted in, or watched many 10-minute plays before?

LO: I’m very familiar with the form. I founded an amateur adult theater group in the Boston area and for seven years we only performed 10-minute plays. It was great fun!

CF: I’ve written about a dozen, I think six have been produced (in the US, Canada, Australia and the UK). I love the form.

KR: Unlike Lauren and Christine, the 10-minute play is new to me. I’ve just begun to direct since moving to San Miguel a year ago, and I find the short form very compelling.

MH: What are the strengths of the 10-minute play form?

CF: Every word counts. You get off to a roaring start, make your point, and exit smartly. That’s fun.

KR: I agree with Christine. The precision of the action, each phrase, each moment, carries such importance in the through-line of the story. Characters must be established immediately and their objectives clear.

LO: After one of my 10-minute shows an audience member said to me, “This format is great for those of us with ADD.” I guess that says a lot about today’s audience and why the short form is so popular.

MH: As a director, when you pick a play–any play–what do you look for?

CF: Characters. And change. Something unexpected has to happen in an amusing or moving way.

LO: Something that moves me. Hard to say what that is exactly, but when I see it I know it.

KR: It sounds as if we all agree. We look for something that moves us as directors. I also look for beautifully crafted language, be it hip and contemporary, or poetic and classical.

MH: What do you find most challenging about the 10-minute play form?

KR: In a longer play we would know about the characters and build to the point where the 10-minute play begins. The actors and directors must work hard to create their own back story, and therefore the truth within the scene.

LO: I would like to add that timing is very important and sometimes tricky. The actors need to work hard.

CF: You have to be on high alert the whole time.

Tickets for the evening performances of Diez Minutos are 150 pesos and may be purchased at La Conexion (Aldama and Libramiento locations). Tickets for the Sunday matinee “Best of the Rest” reading are 50 pesos.

Diez Minutos: An all-star cast of San Miguel de Allende actors
8 plays – 3 directors – 15 actors!
Priorities. Starring Taylor Korobow & Tim Johnson. Written by Terri Peterson and directed by Christine Foster.
The Baggage Handler. Starring Jill Gottlieb, Michael Gottlieb & John Wharton. Written by Bill Johnson and directed by Christine Foster.
Oh, Boo Hoo, Nobody’s Perfect. Starring India Bastien, Anne Campbell & Steve Weisburg. Written by Ellen West and directed by Lauren Osornio.
Brief Encounter. Starring Kate Rowland & John Wharton. Written by Mark Wilson and directed by Christine Foster.

Off Season. Starring Anne Campbell & Ted Englander. Written by Randy Kraft and directed by Lauren Osornio.
How Nice of You to Ask. Starring Lola Smith and David Galitzky. Written by Rich Rubin and directed by Kate Rowland.
Neil Diamond Saved My Life. Starring Billie Mercer and Chris Davis. Written by Sylvia Dow and directed by Christine Foster.
Surprise. Starring Gerri Baruch, Jill Gottlieb & Michael Gottlieb. Written by Mark Harvey Levine and directed by Kate Rowland.

By Michael Hager

Start with eight of the best contemporary 10-minute plays in the English language. Add in an all-star lineup of San Miguel’s favorite actors and directors. Put them together in one of the town’s more intimate stage settings. Then stir with conflict, humor and satire. What you end up with is “Diez Minutos,” an international festival of original 10-minute plays, and an unforgettable night of live theater.

Theater
“Diez Minutos”
San Miguel’s First International
Festival of 10-Minute Plays
Thu, Apr 11-Sat, Apr 13, 7pm
Shelter Theater
Vicente Guerrero 4
150 pesos

Theater
Special Sunday matinee reading
Sun, Apr 14, 2pm
“Best of the Rest” of San Miguel
Shelter Theater
Vicente Guerrero 4
50 pesos

Directors Christine Foster, Lauren Osornio and Kate Rowland have picked plays to tickle just about any fancy and cast them with such local favorites as Michael and Jill Gottlieb, John Wharton, Lola Smith and India Bastien, to name but a few of the many talented actors involved in “Diez Minutos.”

“Plays from 50 of the best masters of the 10-minute form, from as far away as Australia and Scotland, were received,” said festival co-producer Mark Saunders. “Out of the 50, we picked six. We reserved two additional spots for playwrights with a San Miguel connection, and are proud to feature full-time resident and playwright Terri Peterson (Priorities) and frequent visitor Randy Kraft (Off Season).”

The 10-minute play was introduced at the Actors Theatre of Louisville’s 1977 Humana Festival. Since then this dynamic and challenging form, “the American theater’s haiku,” has been embraced worldwide.

A good part of the festival’s liveliness will come from so many disparate works bumping up against one another. The result is a series of adrenaline-charged, thought-provoking performances that are unpredictable, uninhibited and unforgettable. In the same evening, you’ll see a range of conflicts and resolutions, from behind the scenes at a dog show to the unforeseen complications of cheating on your spouse to the mysterious healing powers of Neil Diamond. The themes may range from serious to silly but they are all compressed theatrical experiences in which the smallest thoughts render the biggest results.

Another entertaining aspect of “Diez Minutos” is that audience members get to vote for their favorite play out of the eight plays performed. The winner of our “People’s Choice Award” will receive special recognition and a cash prize.

The fully staged productions will take place at Shelter Theater, Vincente Guerrero 4, colonia San Rafael, on the evenings of April 11-13, beginning at 7pm. Tickets are 150 pesos.

There will be a special matinee reading beginning at 2pm on Sunday, April 14 of the “Best of the Rest” of the 10-minute plays from San Miguel playwrights. Tickets for the matinee reading are 50 pesos.

All tickets can be purchased at La Conexión on Aldama, Libramiento, and Café Monet locations. It’s a theater festival you won’t soon forget. So don’t just pencil us in, use your pen. For more information, contact Mark Saunders (markcharlessaunders@gmail.com.)

The much-loved theater company The Comedy of the Universe, led by José Luis Mendoza, is responsible for a lot of laughs and much good cheer in our community. It will present a carousel of skits based on English humor — bizarre situations solved in bizarre ways, everyday people involved in weird situations, all of them funny, heartbreaking and witty.

Theater
The Cool Side of Life
By The Comedy of the Universe
Mon, Mar 7, 7pm
Teatro Ángela Peralta
8o pesos

A lot of people have asked us to stage some of the skits that we presented at El Sindicato last year; some missed them and some want to see them again. Well, good news for everyone! We decide to bring back the best ones and complement them with a collection of new ones.

By popular demand I will be doing some all-time favorites like Figaro, Montmartre Vignette, The Sensible Thief and more. The Comedy of the Universe is getting better and better every year and this performance is dedicated to all our friends from Canada, US and the UK. You will get to enjoy some adaptations of the classics from Monty Python, Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry and the rest, written by me. This show is a guaranteed laugh-a-thon, so come to the Teatro Ángela Peralta this Monday, March 4, at 7pm.

Tickets are 80 pesos at the theater box office or El Sindicato. Come and support comedy theater and The Comedy of the Universe. Let’s get the Cool Side of Life with this Sopa De Locos 2013.

This coming week Playreaders proudly presents La Cantatrice Chauve, translated from French as The Bald Soprano or The Bald Prima Donna. This play offers a rare opportunity to see the work that launched the Theater of the Absurd in Europe, a movement subsequently embraced and developed by such literary giants as Beckett, Albee and Pinter.

Theater
The Bald Soprano
Tue-Thu, Mar 4-6, 7:30pm
St. Paul’s Church
Cardo 6
20 pesos

The Bald Soprano was the first play written by French-Romanian playwright Eugène Ionesco. It premiered on 11 May 1950 (almost 63 years ago!) at the Théâtre des Noctambules in Paris and since 1957, there have been continuous performances at the Théâtre de la Huchette in that same city. With a record number of interpretations, it has become one of the most performed plays in France.

The play begins with a seemingly ordinary scene. An English couple, the Smiths, are sitting in their living room after dinner talking about what amounts to a lot of nothing. Mrs. Smith recounts to her husband all the things that have happened earlier in the evening, even though Mr. Smith was actually present himself. They then discuss a family in which everyone is named Bobby Watson.

The Smiths’ maid, Mary, appears on the scene and announces that their friends the Martins have arrived. It turns out that the conversation of the Martins is as strange as that of the Smiths. They don’t seem to remember each other, even though they apparently live in the same house, sleep in the same bed, and just traveled on the same train together. Eventually, through an extended process of elimination, they decide that they must be a married couple!

The Smiths and the Martins then have a prolonged nonsensical chat. Soon the Fire Chief arrives hoping there is a fire in the house. He is crestfallen to learn there isn’t, but since he has nothing better to do, he stays and starts telling his own wacky stories.

As the play continues, the conversation among the characters… always strange…becomes stranger yet, then completely nonsensical and finally so wildly chaotic that it collapses entirely as a form of communication.

The play ends in the midst of this uproar and then promptly begins again with a reprise of the original domestic scene, except this time it is the Martins who recite the opening lines.

Cast for this production includes John Wharton and Judy Newell as the Smiths, Jim Wright and Kate Rowland as the Martins, Geoff Hargreaves plays the Firechief, Lauren Osornio is the Maid.

Lights and sound by Don Nieglos. Susan Rushton directs. Tickets 20 peso donation at the door. Come early to be sure of a seat!

Daniel Packard (www.danielpackard.com) is a professional love coach and award-winning speaker and humorist. For the last two years he has been working on an Off-Broadway show with the producers of Book of Mormon. He is now developing a TV reality show with Sony called “Love Lab.”

Theater
The Live Group Sex Therapy Show
Fri, Jan 18 & Sat, Jan 19, 8 pm
Shelter Theater
Vicente Guerrero 4
Col. San Rafael
200 Pesos
Reservations: 154-7524
www.shelterVG4.com

Susan Page: So for those that have not seen you, what is The Live Group Sex Therapy Show?

Daniel Packard: Hard to say. I guess I’d call it the bastard child of a one-man comedy show, on-the-fly love therapy session with, of course, world-class wiener jokes.

SP: San Miguel audiences seem to like your show because it’s smart, insightful and really challenges them.

DP: Yeah, this isn’t another fluffy “Wow! Men and women sure are different” kind of show. I’m drawing from my work as a professional dating and relationship coach, so these are the deeper truths and blind spots that I’ve seen keep people–and myself really–from the deeper love we all seek. Deep stuff with a fun delivery, that’s what the show is.

SP: You’ve come back five years in a row, and it’s been a hit every time. What is going to be different this time?

DP: Every show I do is a caffeinated tight rope act, teetering between improvisational brilliance and just sheer performance chaos. In years past, I wanted to be liked and so I played it a bit safe. But this year I am really going to just let loose and see what myself and the audience can come up with. I am both scared and excited.

SP: And what topics will you cover?

DP: The short answer is that I’m not really sure; the audience will help me decide. But I think I am maturing as an artist and as a person. I am less angry and see now the struggle so many of us deal with, with more clarity and compassion. Also I recently became engaged, so I have a whole new Amazon.com warehouse full of material to draw from.

SP: And then you are doing a workshop on Sunday the 20th?

DP: Yeah, for those that want to go deeper, I am doing a three-hour workshop with my fiancé, Lindsay Chrisler, who is also a “love coach.” It’s called “Find Them Faster: A Practical, Magical, Radical Guide Tt Lasting Love.” It’s for men and women, singles and couples. If you want more love in your life, this will give you some meaty insights to ponder and put into practice. FindThemFaster.com has all the details.

SP: What surprises you about San Miguel audiences?

DP: I was performing last year and the crowd that night was mostly 60 and 70-year-olds and I thought to myself “Oh boy, I bet they are going to clam up when I get to the sex material.” Instead, that is the part they liked the best. When I started talking about sex they erupted like kids on Christmas morning. So this year, more sex talk for sure.

Susan Page is the author of six books about relationships and director of the San Miguel Literary Sala and the San Miguel Writers’ Conference. She sat down with Daniel to talk about his upcoming return to the enthusiastic audiences of San Miguel.

House is a stand up, sit down one-man comedy nightmare about Victor, a man on the edge. Víctor, the loser inhabiting Daniel Macivor’s dark and furiously funny one-man show, takes you on a whirlwind tour of the offices, circus tents, supermarkets, Ramada Inns, sewers, dreams, and houses that compose the hallucinatory landscape of his life.

One-man comedy
House
Mon, Jan 7, 14, 21, 28, 7pm
Shelter Theater
Vicente Guerrero 4
Colonia San Rafael
150 pesos

Daniel Macivor is one of Canada’s most accomplished playwrights and winner of the prestigious Elinore and Lou Sliminovitch Prize, the GLAAD Award and the Governor

General’s Award. Daniel’s plays have been met with acclaim throughout Canada and the

United States, Australia, Israel, Europe, the UK and now Mexico. Alan Jordan, award- winning Canadian Actor, began his actor training at the famed Neighborhood PlayHouse School of Theater in New York studying with the renowned Sanford Meisner.

Mr. Jordan’s many stage credits include starring roles at New York’s Circle Repertory

Company, Manhattan Theater Club, and Playwrights Horizon, as well as Canada’s Stratford Festival and the Globe Theater.

He toured the United States in national companies of the musicals Applause and Shenandoah, and the total improvisational theater piece, The Proposition. Mr. Jordan also starred in an award-winning four-hour production of Hamlet at New Jersey

Shakespeare Festival. Television and film audiences have seen Mr. Jordan as a guest star in over one hundred productions, such as Hill Street Blues, Dallas, Falcon Crest, Knight Rider, Fall Guy, Friday 13th, Echoes in the Darkness, Sorry Wrong Number, Woman on the Run, African Journey, The Young and the Restless, and Santa Barbara.

In Hollywood, Mr. Jordan was Chairman of the Board at Theatre West and he is co-founder of Actors Repertory Company, and The Actors Workshop in Toronto.

House will play every Monday in January (7, 14, 21, 28) at the Shelter Theater, Vicente Guerrero 4, colonia San Rafael, San Miguel de Allende at 7pm. Tickets for general seating at 150 pesos go on sale December 27, at Solutions, Mesones 57, San Miguel de Allende. A tour of House will include Guanajuato, Chapala, León and Mexico City.

The House of Bernarda Alba, written by the renowned playwright and poet Federico Garcia Lorca in 1936, and whose release was not permitted in Spain until 1964, 28 years after it was written, is considered his masterpiece. It  is also his last work, because in that same year, at the outbreak of the civil war, the poet was arrested by Franco’s forces and executed on August 19 on charges of freethinking and being a person liable to disrupt social order.

The central theme of the play is the conflict between authority and freedom. The tyranny embodied by Bernarda Alba represents the patriarchal values and anticipates the Franco dictatorship. Facing the repression imposed by their mother, her daughters will respond with a range of attitudes ranging from submission to rebellion against traditional morality.

Lorca is a master in searching the human soul and expressing its passions in a poetic way. Thus — in this drama full of symbolism — hatred, envy, intrigue, rebellion against what is established and against appearances, are openly expressed. The power of money, the repression of women and other social differences are central themes.

Teatro/Theater
La casa de Bernarda Alba/The House of Bernarda Alba
Federico García Lorca
Grupo El Caldero
Nov 29, 30, 8pm;  Dec 1, 7pm
Teatro Santa Ana
Reloj 50-A
100 pesos
50 peso, INAPAM & students/estudiantes
Spanish (English summary included in hand program)

The theater troupe El Caldero (The Cauldron) will present a free version of this play at the end of November. The cast includes: Jesús Ibarra, Alejandro Cruz, Anabella Martínez, Marcia Armenta, Alina Monterrubio, Ana María Muñoz,  Marisa Boullosa, Francisca Salcedo, Marisa Ávalos and Juan Elías Robledo. Ya Ya Silva executes lights and sound.  Lilia Trápaga directs.

Performances will take place at Teatro Santa Ana of La Biblioteca on November 29 and 30, at 8 pm, and Saturday, December 1, at 7 pm.

“El Caldero” interpreta a Lorca.

¿Hasta qué punto la vida es preservada o bien, aniquilada por los principios, las instituciones o  el deber ser? …¿Hasta qué punto estamos dispuestos a ceder nuestra libertad en aras de sentirnos protegidos? La situación actual nos confronta  de manera personal con estas cuestiones y  el teatro nos da la posibilidad de reflexionar sobre ellas. Tal es el caso de  La casa de Bernarda Alba,  del célebre poeta y dramaturgo español Federico García Lorca, asesinado por las fuerzas  fascistas durante la Guerra Civil Española.

El grupo teatral “El Caldero”  presentará,  a fines de noviembre, una versión libre de esta obra. Participan en ella: Jesús Ibarra, Alejandro Cruz, Anabella Martínez, Marcia Armenta, Alina Monterrubio, Ana María Muñoz,  Marisa Boullosa, Francisca Salcedo, Marisa Ávalos y Juan Elías Robledo. El sonido e iluminación estarán a cargo de Ya Ya Silva.  Lilia Trápaga dirige.

Las funciones serán en el Teatro Santa Ana de la Biblioteca los días jueves 29 y viernes 30 de noviembre a las 8 pm y el sábado 1º de diciembre a las 7 pm.

Lorca’s Tragedy on Stage

To what an extent life is either protected or annihilated by principles, institutions and the sense of duty? To what an extent are we willing to give up our freedom in order to feel safe? The current situation confronts us in a personal way with these questions and theater gives us the chance to reflect upon them. Such is the case of  The house of Bernarda Alba, by Federico Garcia Lorca, the celebrated Spanish poet and playwright, killed by the fascist forces during the Spanish Civil War.

The theater troupe “El Caldero” (The Cauldron) will present a free version of this play, by the end of November. The cast includes: Jesús Ibarra, Alejandro Cruz, Anabella Martínez, Marcia Armenta, Alina Monterrubio, Ana María Muñoz,  Marisa Boullosa, Francisca Salcedo, Marisa Ávalos and Juan Elías Robledo. Ya Ya Silva executes lights and sound.  Lilia Trápaga directs.

Performances will take place at Teatro Santa Ana of the Biblioteca on November 29 and 30, at 8 pm, and Saturday, December 1, at 7 pm.