rasgos asiáticos

Written by Virginia Grise
Direction Jorge B. Merced
Performed in English

CAST
Anna Lamadrid, Elise Hernández, Sol Crespo, Stella Elvira Franco, Omar Pérez, Teresa Yenque.

TEAM
Set and Costume Design Jorge B. Merced
Lighting Design Jessica Moya
Photography Marisol Díaz
Historic photography Vicki Grise

ABOUT
rasgos asiáticos is a memory play that takes place in the present tense as a story a Chicana of Chinese descent tells her lesbian lover of her family history. Traveling between the present and the past both in Texas and Mexico the play tells tales of migration, racism, woman loving and hurting.

The story is presented as a series of moving photographs, where generations of matriarchs come to life in a non-lineal journey, converging and reinventing identities, gender roles and familial relations.

Our staging goes one step further in the exploration of lineage and gender performance, by assigning brief segments of the text to a male-presenting character, perhaps a direct descendant of the protagonist, in awe of the Chicana/Chinese lineage coming to life through the photos. Silent through most of the play, they sift through historical documents and images, occasionally echoing lines from the women’s story into a recording device.

Winner of Pregones’ 2011 Asuncion Competition, showcasing the work of Queer Playwrights. Staged Reading, Directed by Virginia Grise, Pregones Theatre, New York, NY, 2011. Workshop Production, Directed by Mira Kingsley, California Institute of the Arts, Valencia, CA, 2008.

Asunción competition jury comments:

“Excellent structure and lyricism. A truly original approach to Queerness.”

“It is ancestral – earthy – ritualistic – but yet contemporary. The intricate caliber of the voices in the story come across seamlessly when performed live, proving the play is greater than what is on the page. The entire piece felt like a long caress.”

“Gorgeous lyrical language. It functions as a rite of ancestor worship. Earthy! It has an undercurrent of something that goes beyond the text. I love how it invites you in through sense, memory, sound and touch.”

“Evocative of the past, of history, of family, all reverberating by accumulation. A gorgeous invitation to listen; to the art of listening. The call for the protagonist to ‘Regrésate/Come back!’ is as much for her as for the audience; we are invited to regresarnos/to come back to the sound and the voices in our stories. Truly gorgeous!”