ROSA ESCAREÑO, INTERIM GENERAL SUPERINTENDENT AND CEO, CHICAGO PARK DISTRICT, JOINS TEATRO VISTA BOARD

Theatre in Chicago News: Welcome Rosa Escareño

 

Rosa Escareño

Teatro Vista, Chicago’s only Equity-affiliated Latinx theater company, has announced that Rosa Escareño, Interim General Superintendent and CEO of the Chicago Park District, has joined its Board of Directors.

"The entire Teatro Vista ensemble is thrilled to welcome Rosa Escareño to our Board of Directors,” said Adela Cepeda, Board President, Teatro Vista. “Rosa brings 15 years of executive level experience and 30 years of government and public service to our Board. We are energized by her vision and her dedication, and excited to have her guidance as Teatro Vista continues to embark on an exciting new future. She is a vital addition to our current Board members, who remain so dedicated to Teatro Vista's art and values."

“It is an honor to join the Teatro Vista Board of Directors, a visionary group of professionals committed to expanding the Latinx life experience through theater in Chicago,” responded Escareño. “I believe firmly in freedom of expression and through Teatro Vista I look forward to the opportunity to elevate local artists and to strengthen the voice of our richly diverse community across artistic, educational and professional boundaries.”

Escareño is a life-long public servant with more than 30 years of government experience. As the Interim General Superintendent and CEO of the Chicago Park District, Escareño manages nearly 2,500 employees and oversees a $500 million agency considered one of the largest park systems in the country, with over 8,800 acres of parkland, more than 600 parks, 26 miles of lakefront, 12 museums, two world-class conservatories, 16 historic lagoons, over 75 nature areas and thousands of special events, sports and entertainment programs.

Prior to her appointment at the Chicago Park District, Escareño served as Commissioner of the City of Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) where she served as a cabinet member under two Mayoral administrations bringing modernization and equity to Chicago’s marketplace. During the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, Escareño was on the forefront of Chicago’s business recovery efforts including reopening Chicago businesses, administering $120 million in business financial relief and setting up protections and policies for businesses and essential workers to ensure a safe city reopening. During her years as Commissioner, she spearheaded important initiatives to grow Chicago’s economic landscape supporting Chicago’s business community while establishing protections for consumers and workers -- all while focusing on diversity, equity, and inclusion to enhance economic growth in underserved communities.

Throughout her career she has championed initiatives to enhance the quality of life of Chicago residents and communities. Escareño holds a degree of Master of Science in Communications from Northwestern University and a degree of Bachelor of Arts from Loyola University Chicago. Born in Zacatecas Mexico, she is a lifelong Chicagoan proud to give back to the city she loves, Chicago.

About Teatro Vista

Teatro Vista is Chicago’s largest, Equity-affiliated professional Latinx theater company and one of the nation’s premier Latinx arts organizations.The company’s primary focus is producing new works by Latinx theater artists from its own ensemble, a group of multi-generational, multi-ethnic and multi-disciplinary artists. 

Teatro Vista ensemble members include Charín Álvarez, Max Arciniega, Desmín Borges, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Ramón Camín, Ivonne Coll, Laura Dahl, Sandra Delgado, Liza Fernández, Khanisha Foster, Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel, Isaac Gómez, Ricardo Gutiérrez, Erik Juárez, Jon Lyon, Sandra Márquez, Eddie Martinez, Salome Martinez, Joe Minoso, Ayssette Muñoz, Christina Nieves, Marvin Quijada, Tommy Rivera-Vega, Gabriel Ruíz, Nate Santana, Cecilia Suarez and co-founder Edward Torres. 

In July, 2021, following a national search, Lorena Diaz and Wendy Mateo were appointed Co-Artistic Directors of Teatro Vista. 

 

Lorena Diaz (left) and Wendy Mateo, Co-Artistic Directors, Teatro Vista. 

“We are deeply energized by Teatro Vista and its ensemble, with its tapestry of talent, innovation and unique perspectives,” said Mateo. “There is a depth to the American Latinx experience that has fueled our 20 years of storytelling and collaboration together. With this particular ensemble, we’ll be able to deepen that storytelling and bring in a kind of nuance and complexity to our stories that our audiences will be inspired by.”

Diaz added, “the opportunities in an ensemble-led theater company are many and Teatro Vista has an abundance of thought-provoking artists who are exploring different genres of creative expression, from writing for television, to audio plays with visual components, to full-fledged plays with music like La Havana Madrid. Expect that kind of excitement going forward.”

Teatro Vista’s Board of Directors includes Adela Cepeda, President, Joan Pantsios, Secretary, Julieta LaMalfa, Treasurer, and Rosa Escareño, Kareem Mohamednur, Carina Sanchez and Jose Vasquez.

Teatro Vista is supported by Alphawood Foundation, the Arts Work Fund, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The Bayless Foundation, Chicago Community Trust, Chicago Cultural Treasures, Chicago Filmmaker Grant, CLATA (Chicago Latino Theater Alliance), DCASE (Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events), The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, Illinois Arts Council, The Joyce Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Culture, Equity, and the Arts at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Pritzker Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, The Shuttered Grant and the Tide-Venturous Foundation. 

For more, visit teatrovista.org, or follow the company on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.

SAVE THE DATES: TEATRO VISTA 2019-20 SEASON

ChiIL Live Shows on our radar

Midwest debut of Evelina Fernández’s ‘60s comedic drama with music Hope: Part II of A Mexican Trilogy is part of DESTINOS – Chicago International Latino Theater Festival

Romance meets physical theater in Marvin Quijada’s world premiere The Dream King, directed by Sandra Márquez

Make way for an all-female mariachi band in American Mariachi by José Cruz González, directed by Teatro Vista co-founder Henry Godinez, in association with Goodman Theatre

The Midwest premiere of Hope: Part II of A Mexican Trilogy by Evelina Fernández brings a grand exploration of Mexican American life in the ’60s to the start of Chicago’s fall theater season. Hope follows the voyage of the Morales family through that turbulent, transformational time, marked by a new young president, the dawn of the sexual revolution and the rock ‘n’ roll explosion. Teatro Vista Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez directs. Hope: Part II of A Mexican Trilogy is also the company’s entry in DESTINOS – 3rd Chicago International Latino Theater Festival. Performances are September 21 – October 27, 2019 at a location TBA.

Next spring Teatro Vista breathes life into The Dream King, a world premiere by ensemble member Marvin Quijada, directed by fellow ensemble member Sandra Márquez. The Dream King is a genre-bending classic love story with a twist: a man falls in love with the woman of his dreams, while in his dreams. Imaginative, inventive, sweet and sometimes scary, The Dream King is a stunning piece of physical theater, told with a lush musical score and mostly without words. Performances are April 4 – May 10, 2020 at The Richard Christiansen Theatre in The Biograph, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago.

Women mariachis? It’s about time! Teatro Vista’s third 2019-20 production is American Mariachi, a heartwarming and hilarious new comedy about the freedom to dream big by José Cruz González, presented in association with Goodman Theatre. Familia, amor and tradición are at the heart of this hilarious and heartwarming new comedy about an all-female mariachi band. Goodman Resident Artistic Associate Henry Godinez, who co-founded Teatro Vista 30 years ago, directs. Performances are April 25-May 31, 2020 in Goodman’s Albert Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago.

Teatrovista.org is your online gateway to tickets and information about the company’s 2019-20 season.

Single tickets to Teatro Vista’s fall production Hope: Part II of A Mexican Trilogy go on sale this summer via clata.org, the DESTINOS – 3rd Chicago International Latino Theater Festival’s website.

Tickets to The Dream King go on sale Monday, February 24, 2020 online at victorygardens.org and via the Victory Gardens box office,
(773) 871-3000. Single tickets to Teatro Vista productions are $20-$35, with discounts for students, seniors and groups of 10 or more.

Memberships to Goodman Theatre’s 2019-20 season including American Mariachi are on sale now at goodmantheatre.org, in person, or by calling (312) 443-3800 (12noon – 5 p.m., daily). Single tickets to American Mariachi, $20-$70, go on sale on February 14, 2020. Discounted tickets for groups of 10 or more are available now. 

                                                               
More about Teatro Vista’s 2019-20 season

Hope: Part II of A Mexican Trilogy
A Midwest Premiere
By Evelina Fernández
Directed by Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez
September 21 – October 27, 2019
At a location TBA
Part of DESTINOS – 3rd Chicago International Latino Theater Festival



The Midwest premiere of Hope: Part II of A Mexican Trilogy by Evelina Fernández is a grand exploration of Mexican American life in the ’60s. Hope follows the voyage of the Morales family through that turbulent, transformational time, marked by a new young president, the dawn of the sexual revolution and the rock ‘n’ roll explosion. Filled with nostalgic ballads, fantasy sequences and healthy doses of humor, Hope pops with keen visuals and poignant storytelling as it offers a glimpse of the Mexican diaspora in ’60s America.

Teatro Vista’s Hope: Part II of A Mexican Trilogy is presented as part of DESTINOS – 3rd Chicago International Latino Theater Festival, September 19 – October 27, 2019. DESTINOS, produced by the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA), is dedicated to showcasing the Latino experience as told by Latino artists from Chicago, the U.S. and Latin America. Discover more at CLATA.org.

Evelina Fernández (playwright), born and raised in East LA, is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter and actor and she writes about the U.S. Latinx experience. She received the L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Writing of a World Premiere Play for A Mexican Trilogy published by Samuel French. The first work in the trilogy, Hope: Part II of a Mexican Trilogy, premiered in October 2011 at the Los Angeles Theatre Center to critical acclaim, earning Fernández a Best Playwright Ovation Award nomination. Charity: Part III of A Mexican Trilogy premiered next in May 2012 (Backstage’s Critic’s Pick) and Faith: Part I of a Mexican Trilogy followed that October, also to critical acclaim. In fall 2016, the plays were combined for a six-hour epic production, A Mexican Trilogy: An American Story at the Los Angeles Theatre Center. Her plays have made the Los Angeles Times Critic's Choice list; Solitude (2009), Dementia (2010) and her holiday pageant play, La Virgen de Guadalupe, Dios Inantzin, have been featured in the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times. In 2003, Dementia won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Theater Production in L.A. and received four L.A. Stage Alliance Ovation Award nominations, including Best World Premiere. Her most recent play, Premeditation was nominated for three Ovation Awards including Best Theater Production in 2014. In March 2015, her adaptation of Plautus’s Pot of Gold, LA Olla was staged at the Getty Villa Lab and had a full production at her home base, the LATC. She was part of the CTG Writers Workshop where she began her “Virgin” series with The Mother of Henry. She was a writer for Emmy Nominated East Los High seasons two and three and is developing A Mexican Trilogy for television with Wise Entertainment, producers of East Los High. Fernández has won several awards and recognitions nationally and internationally for her work in film and television, including the Nosotros Golden Eagle Award for Outstanding Writing for her produced screenplay, Luminarias; International Film Festival in Bolivia (Best Screenplay – Luminarias), and many more. She was nominated for the Humanitas Prize in 2005 for an episode of PBS’s Maya and Miguel, “Give me a little sign." She was awarded the "Women in Entertainment" award by the Comision Femenil of Los Angeles along with other prominent Latinas; and was honored by the Community Coalition for her community work. She received a commendation from the Los Angeles City Council and was the recipient of the Lifetime Television Latino Pioneer Award in Washington, D.C; the Spirit Award from the Latino Legislative Caucus in Sacramento, CA and the Latina Business Women Association’s Entertainment Award. She was a proud member of Honorable Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s Transition Team in 2005, was appointed by both Mayor Villaraigosa and Mayor Garcetti as a Commissioner on the City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission. Fernández was honored by La Opinion with the Mujeres Destacadas Award for her contribution to the Arts, received recognition awards from Playwright’s Arena, the National Hispanic Media Coalition and the California State Assembly. Fernández is a founding and board member of the Latino Theater Company and the Los Angeles Theatre Center.

Teatro Vista Executive Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez (director) recently staged the company’s world premieres of Stephanie Alison Walker’s The Madres and The Abuelas. Other Teatro Vista directing credits are The Wolf at the End of the Block, Parachute Men, In The Time of the Butterflies, Between You, Me & The Lampshade, A View From The Bridge, Momma’s Boyz, i put the fear of mexico in ’em and La Mágica Posada. He is co-founder of the Alliance of Latinx Theatre Artists of Chicago (ALTA), a service organization dedicated to promoting and fostering Latinx theater artists in Chicago. As an actor, his credits include Destiny of Desire at Goodman Theatre and South Coast Repertory, In The Heights at Paramount and the world premieres of Song For The Disappeared and Fish Men at Goodman. He has also performed at Actors Theatre in Louisville, Denver Center Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, Victory Gardens and Lookingglass Theatre. TV credits include Chicago PD, Sirens and Boss. Before joining Teatro Vista, Gutiérrez served as the artistic director of Nosotros in Los Angeles and The Canterbury Theatre in Indiana.



The Dream King
A World Premiere
By Marvin Quijada
Directed by Sandra Márquez
April 4 – May 10, 2020
At The Richard Christiansen Theatre in The Biograph,
2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago



The Dream King is a genre-bending classic love story with a twist: a man falls in love with the woman of his dreams, while in his dreams. Imaginative, inventive, sweet and sometimes scary, this piece of physical theater, told with a lush musical score and mostly without words, evokes wonder and delight as it delves into the places where sometimes you must confront your personal demons in order to prevail. 

Marvin Quijada (creator, performer) is a Chicago based electronic music producer/composer, iOS musician, DJ, theatrical actor, and a clown/mime. He is an ensemble member with Teatro Vista and Silent Theater. His Teatro Vista stage credits include La Havana Madrid, Mommas Boyz and i put the fear of mexico in ‘em. Other Chicago credits include Pericles, Short Shakespeare! The Comedy of Errors, Romeo and Juliet and Othello (Chicago Shakespeare), Season on the Line (The House Theatre) and The Dueling Gentlemen (Silent Theatre Company) which he wrote and directed. His New York credits include Lulu: A Black and White Silent Play (Silent Theatre) which won best play at the NY Fringe Festival in 2005. TV credits include Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D. Follow him on SoundCloud and Instagram: SILENT MARVIN.

Sandra Márquez (director) is a longtime Teatro Vista member where her directing credits include Fade, My Mañana Comes, Breakfast Lunch & Dinner and the Jeff-nominated Our Lady of the Underpass. She has acted in numerous Teatro Vista productions including A View from the Bridge for which she received a Jeff Award. Márquez joined the Steppenwolf ensemble in spring 2016 where she most appeared in Mary Page Marlowe, The Motherf**ker with the Hat, The Roommate, A Streetcar Named Desire, Sonia Flew and One Arm. She completed a three-year arc playing Clytemnestra in what was billed as Court Theater's Iphigenia Cycle (Iphigenia at Aulis, Electra and Agememnon). Film and television credits include Boss, Empire, Chicago Med, Chicago Justice and Timer. Márquez is on the theater faculty at Northwestern University.



American Mariachi
In association with Goodman Theatre
By José Cruz González
Directed by Henry Godinez
April 25 – May 31, 2020
At Goodman’s Albert Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St., Chicago





Familia, amor and tradición are at the heart of this hilarious and heartwarming new comedy about the freedom to dream big. Lucha spends her days caring for her ailing mother, but longs to shake up her 1970s home life. When a forgotten record album sparks her mother’s memory, Lucha and her cousin strike upon a radical idea: to create an all-female mariachi band. Infused with live mariachi music, this “big-hearted, musical tug at the heartstrings” (Denver Post) reveals how music and love can make just about anything possible.

José Cruz González's plays include American Mariachi (Denver Center Theatre Company, Old Globe Theatre), Sunsets & Margaritas (Denver Center Theatre Company), September Shoes (Geva Theatre), Curious (Teatro del Pueblo), Among the Darkest Shadows (Wharton Center for Performing Arts), The Highest Heaven (Childsplay), The Long Road Today (South Coast Repertory), The Astronaut Farmworker (La Jolla Playhouse) and The Magic Rainforest (The Kennedy Center). González has written for PAZ, the Emmy Award nominated television series produced by Discovery Kids for The Learning Channel. His plays have been published by Dramatic Publishing, University of Texas Press, Smith and Kraus, Inc., Anchorage Press Plays, Inc., Playscripts, Inc., Lion and Seagoat Press, and Dutton Children’s Books. González was a 2016 PEN Center USA Literary Award Finalist, 2015 Orlin Corey Medallion by the Children’s Theatre Foundation, 2012 Ann Shaw Fellowship by Theatre for Young Audiences/USA, 2010 Kennedy Center National Teaching Artist Grant, and is a member of the College of Fellows of the American Theatre, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He is a professor at California State University Los Angeles and a member of The Dramatists Guild of America and TYA/USA. He is a Playwright in Residence at Childsplay (AZ).

Henry Godinez (Director) is the Resident Artistic Associate at Goodman Theatre. As an actor, Godinez appeared most recently in Robert Falls’ reimagining of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale, 2666 and the Goodman/Teatro Buendía of Cuba world premiere of Pedro Páramo, and at Writers Theatre in the title role of Quixote: In the Conquest of Self. He has also appeared on television in Chicago PD, Above the Law, The Beast, The Chicago Code, Boss and Chicago Fire. His Goodman directing credits include Charise Castro Smith’s Feathers and Teeth, The Sins of Sor Juana and Mariela in the Desert by Karen Zacarías; José Rivera’s Boleros for the Disenchanted (and world premiere at Yale Repertory Theatre); Regina Taylor’s Millennium Mambo; Luis Alfaro’s Electricidad and Straight as a Line; The Cook by Eduardo Machado; Zoot Suit by Luis Valdez; the Goodman/Teatro Vista co-production of José Rivera’s Cloud Tectonics and the 1996–2001 productions of A Christmas Carol. He also served as director of the Goodman’s Latino Theatre Festival. Co-founder and former artistic director of Teatro Vista, Godinez is the recipient of the 1999 Theatre Communications Group Alan Schneider Director Award, the Distinguished Service Award from the Lawyers for the Creative Arts and was honored as the 2008 Latino Professional of the Year by the Chicago Latino Network. Born in Havana, Cuba, Godinez is a professor at Northwestern University and serves on the Board of Directors of the Illinois Arts Council and Albany Park Theater Project.

 American Mariachi | Director Henry Godinez

About Teatro Vista

Teatro Vista shares and celebrates the riches of Latinx culture with Chicago audiences. The company provides work and professional advancement opportunities for Latinx theatre artists, with special emphasis on the company’s ensemble members, and seeks to enhance the curricular goals of Chicago students through theater. Teatro Vista was celebrated as one of “Chicago’s Cultural Leaders” by the Arts & Business Council of Chicago and received the League of Chicago Theatre’s Artistic Leadership Award.

Teatro Vista’s primary focus is producing new works by Latinx theatre artists and presenting classic plays featuring artists of color. Its artistic vision is shaped by the company’s ensemble members, a group of multi-generational, multi-ethnic and multi- disciplinary artists. They inform Teatro Vista’s artistic aesthetic by devising original works as well as by selecting plays with themes that are engaging and relevant to Chicago’s diverse population.

Teatro Vista was founded in 1990 by Edward Torres and Henry Godinez. As Teatro Vista’s first Artistic Director, Godinez guided the company during the formative years. He helped stage successful productions and establish vital relationships with other theatre companies and artists. When Godinez stepped down, Torres was appointed Artistic Director. Under Torres’ direction, Teatro Vista used the stage to engage, connect and challenge audience members using the company’s mission as his guide.

In 2012, Torres moved to New York and the Board of Directors promoted Associate Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez to the position of Executive Artistic Director. In 2017, Sylvia Lopez joined Teatro Vista as Managing and Development Director. Previously, Lopez was Director of Marketing and Development of the International Latino Cultural Center and had her own
multicultural event production company.

Teatro Vista ensemble members include Charín Álvarez, Max Arciniega, Desmín Borges, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Ramón Camín, Ivonne Coll, Laura Dahl, Sandra Delgado, Liza Fernández, Khanisha Foster, Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel, Issac Gomez, Ricardo Gutiérrez, Erik Juárez, Jon Lyon, Sandra Márquez, Eddie Martinez, Salome Martinez, Joe Minoso, Ayssette Muñoz, Christina Nieves, Marvin Quijada, Tommy Rivera-Vega, Gabriel Ruíz, Nate Santana, Cecilia Suarez and co-founder Edward Torres.

Teatro Vista’s Board of Directors is Tom Vega-Byrnes, President; Joan Pantsios, Secretary, and Ezequiel “Zeek” Agosto, Bhuvana Badrinathan, Adela Cepeda, Edgar Delgado, Ricardo Gutiérrez, Kelly Jones, Sylvia Lopez, Kareem Mohamednur, Carina Sanchez, Angel Torres and Jose Vasquez.

Teatro Vista is supported by Alphawood Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events of the City of Chicago, Art Works, Illinois Arts Council, Lester and Hope Abelson, The Shubert Foundation, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation, the Bayless Family Foundation and Vidal & Associates. Purple Group is Teatro Vista’s Headline Season Sponsor.

For more, visit teatrovista.org, or follow the company on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.

About Goodman Theatre
GOODMAN THEATRE, America’s “Best Regional Theater” (Time) and “Chicago’s flagship resident stage” (Chicago Tribune), is a premier not-for-profit theater distinguished by the quality and scope of its artistic programming and civic engagement. Led by Artistic Director Robert Falls and Executive Director Roche Schulfer, the theater’s artistic priorities include new play development (more than 150 world or American premieres), large scale musical theater works and reimagined classics. In addition, the Goodman is the first theater in the world to produce all 10 plays in August Wilson’s “American Century Cycle.” Key to the theater’s success are its distinguished members of the Artistic Collective: Brian Dennehy, Rebecca Gilman, Henry Godinez, Dael Orlandersmith, Steve Scott, Chuck Smith, Regina Taylor, Henry Wishcamper and Mary Zimmerman. Awards for artistic excellence include two Pulitzer Prizes, 22 Tony Awards and more than 160 Joseph Jefferson Awards. GoodmanTheatre.org

OPENING: Jane The Virgin's Ivonne Coll Stars in Teatro Vista's World Premiere of The Madres

Chi IL Live Shows On Our Radar:

Award-wining Latin film, TV and stage star Ivonne Coll, who plays matriarch Alba Villanueva on TV’s Jane The Virgin, will lead the cast of 

Teatro Vista’s Spring world premiere, 

The Madres.

ChiIL Live Shows will be out to review the World Premiere of The Madres at Victory Gardens on April 29th. The story of Argentina's terrifying reign of state sanctioned abductions and incarceration should have a voice on stage. I'm glad to hear Teatro Vista's staging this powerful work and bringing awareness of the tragedies that have been occurring for generations to Chicago audiences. Check back soon for my full review.

Set in the late 1970s during Argentina’s notorious Guerra Sucia, or “Dirty War,” The Madres by Stephanie Alison Walker tells the empowering story of three generations of women - a grandmother, a mother and a daughter - and their desperate attempt to keep their family intact in the face of state-sponsored intimidation, kidnappings and murder.

Teatro Vista Executive Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez directs The Madres, which makes its debut in Chicago as a National New Play Network 2018 Rolling World Premiere.

Teatro Vista’s cast for The Madres: (from left) Ivonne Coll, Lorena Diaz,
Ramón Camín, Felipe Carrasco and Ilse Zacharias. Stephanie Alison Walker is the playwright.
Teatro Vista Executive Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez will direct. 

In addition to Coll as Josefina, the grandmother, The Madres stars Lorena Diaz (Carolina, the mother), Ramón Camín (Padre Juan), Felipe Carrasco (Diego) and Ilse Zacharias (Belén, the daughter). Designers are Jose Manuel Diaz (set), Uriel Gomez (costumes), Jessica Doyle (lights) and Eric Backus (sound). Jennifer Aparicio is production manager. Stage manager is Stephanie Hurowitz. 

The Madres premieres April 21-May 27, 2018 at Victory Gardens, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago, in the Richard Christiansen Theater. Previews are Saturday, April 21 at 8 p.m., Sunday, April 22 at 3:30 p.m., and Thursday, April 26 at 8 p.m. 

Performances run through May 27: Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Tickets are $20-$45, and go on sale March 5 at 10 a.m.

For tickets and group discounts, visit TeatroVista.org, call the Victory Gardens box office, (773) 871-3000, or visit Victory Gardens (The Biograph) during box office hours. Metered, street and valet parking is available near the Biograph. The theater is easily accessed on the CTA Red, Purple and Brown lines via the Fullerton stop. The CTA 8 Halsted and 74 Fullerton buses also stop at Fullerton and Halsted, 1/2 block south of the theater. For more information, visit VictoryGardens.org/PlanYourVisit.


Más about The Madres (The Mothers)

It's 1979 in Buenos Aires, Argentina where people are disappearing right off the street. The so-called "Dirty War" waged by the military Junta against its own people is in full-swing. Carolina and her mother Josefina are searching for “Caro’s” pregnant daughter Belén, who has been missing for twelve weeks. Then they receive a surprise visit from a priest who is now the chaplain to the military at ESMA, a known concentration camp. Next to drop by is Diego, a young soldier from the neighborhood, also stationed at ESMA. Their visits lead Josefina and Carolina to devise a plan to try to see Belén one last time. Will it work? Will they save her baby? Will they be able to save themselves?  

The “Dirty War” was the name the Argentine military dictatorship used for a period of state terrorism in Argentina from roughly 1974 to 1983, who targeted anyone believed to be a subversive or in any way associated with socialism. This included students, artists, journalists, political activists, mothers looking for the disappeared, nuns and anyone who spoke out against the military's reign of terror. As estimated 30,000 Argentines disappeared and were never heard from again.

Photo of Las Madres courtesy Argentinian photojournalist Daniel Garcia

Las Madres, also known as the Mothers of the Disappeared or Madres de los Desaparecidos, are a group of brave women who, when public protest was outlawed by the military dictatorship, marched in front of the Casa Rosada (Pink House) demanding the truth about the whereabouts of their missing children and later, grandchildren. Three of the original founding members ended up among the "disappeared." They began marching every Thursday in 1977 and continue marching today.


About the National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere Initiative

Teatro Vista’s production of The Madres is presented with support from the National New Play Network (NNPN) Rolling World Premiere initiative. With support from NNPN, The Madres will receive four consecutive productions in 2018, kicking off in Los Angeles with Skylight Theatre Company, then Chicago at Teatro Vista, followed by San Diego at Moxie Theatre and Austin with Shrewd Productions. NNPN’s Rolling World Premiere program supports three or more theaters that choose to mount the same new play within a 12-month period, allowing the playwright to develop a new work with multiple creative teams in multiple communities. The playwright is part of the process, working on the script and making adjustments based on what is learned from each production. For more information, visit nnpn.org.


About Teatro Vista

Teatro Vista produces, develops and commissions plays that explore the wealth and variety of the human experience from a Latinx perspective. The company provides work and professional advancement opportunities for Latinx theatre artists, with special emphasis on the company’s ensemble members, and seeks to enhance the curricular goals of Chicago students through theatre. Teatro Vista was recently celebrated as one of “Chicago’s Cultural Leaders” by the Arts & Business Council of Chicago and received the League of Chicago Theatre’s Artistic Leadership Award.

Teatro Vista’s primary focus is producing new works by Latinx theatre artists and presenting classic plays featuring artists of color. Its artistic vision is shaped by the company’s ensemble members, a group of multi-generational, multi-ethnic and multi- disciplinary artists. They inform Teatro Vista’s artistic aesthetic by devising original works as well as by selecting plays with themes that are engaging and relevant to Chicago’s diverse population.

Teatro Vista was founded in 1990 by Edward Torres and Henry Godinez. As Teatro Vista’s first Artistic Director, Godinez guided the company during the formative years. He helped stage successful productions and establish vital relationships with other theatre companies and artists. When Godinez stepped down, Torres was appointed Artistic Director. Under Torres’ direction, Teatro Vista used the stage to engage, connect and challenge audience members using the company’s mission as his guide.

In 2012, Torres moved to New York and the Board of Directors promoted Associate Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez to the position of Executive Artistic Director. In 2017, Sylvia Hevia joined Teatro Vista as Managing and Development Director. Previously, Hevia was Director of Marketing and Development of the International Latino Cultural Center and had her own multicultural event production company.

In addition to Gutiérrez, Teatro Vista ensemble members include Charín Álvarez, Max Arciniega, Desmín Borges, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Ramón Camín, Ivonne Coll, Laura Dahl, Sandra Delgado, Liza Fernández, Khanisha Foster, Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel, Issac Gomez, Erik Juárez, Jon Lyon, Sandra Márquez, Eddie Martinez, Salome Martinez, Joe Minoso, Ayssette Muñoz, Christina Nieves, Marvin Quijada, Tommy Rivera-Vega, Gabriel Ruíz, Nate Santana, Cecilia Suarez and co-founder Edward Torres.

Teatro Vista’s Board of Directors includes Ezequiel “Zeek” Agosto, President; Rodrigo García and Rosanna Márquez, Vice Presidents; Joan Pantsios, Secretary; Tom Vega-Byrnes, Treasurer; and Bhuvana Badrinathan, Edgar Delgado, Ricardo Gutiérrez, Sylvia Hevia, Kareem C. Mohamednur and Angel Torres.

Teatro Vista is supported by The Joyce Foundation, Alphawood Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events of the City of Chicago, The Shubert Foundation, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation, the Bayless Family Foundation and The Saints.

Purple Group is Teatro Vista’s Headline Season Sponsor. Teatro Vista is a Victory Gardens Resident Theater. For more information, visit TeatroVista.org.

OPENING: Teatro Vista's FADE at Victory Gardens Through 12/23/17

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

Victory Gardens Theater Presents

Fade

By Victory Gardens Theatre Ensemble Playwright Tanya Saracho

Directed by Teatro Vista Ensemble Member Sandra Marquez

A Co-Production with Teatro Vista

In Association with CLATA

Fade features Teatro Vista Ensemble Member Eddie Martinez (Abel) and Sari Sanchez (Lucia).

November 4 – December 23, 2017

Tonight, ChiIL Live Shows will be ChiILin' at Chi, IL's Victory Gardens Theater for the press opening of Fade, a co – production with Teatro Vista, written by Tanya Saracho and directed by Sandra Marquez. We love it when our favorites play well together and we've enjoyed Victory Gardens and Teatro Vista's thought provoking productions for years. Can't wait to catch this collaboration. Check back soon for our full review.

Victory Gardens Theater continues its 43rd season with Fade runs November 4 – December 23, 2017 at Victory Gardens Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue.

In this witty behind-the-scenes drama, Mexican-born Lucia is hired to write for a ruthless Hollywood TV series. She soon discovers that the Mexican American custodian, Abel, has a windfall of plot ideas. As their friendship grows, his stories start to blur with hers with unexpected consequences. Fade, directed by Sandra Marquez, is an acclaimed new play from Tanya Saracho (How to Get Away with Murder, Looking, Girls) whose writing “lands in that sweet spot between comedy and drama” (Chicago Tribune).

The creative team includes Regina Garcia (scenic design), Christine Pascual (costume design), Jesse Klug (lighting design), Victorio Delorio (sound design), and Mealah Heidenreich (properties). The dramaturg is Isaac Gomez and the stage manager is Tina M. Jach.

About the Artists
Tanya Saracho (Playwright) was born in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, México. She is a playwright and Television writer who’s worked on How To Get Away With Murder, HBO’s Looking, Girls, and Devious Maids. Named “Best New Playwright” by Chicago Magazine in 2010, Saracho has had plays produced at: Primary Stages in NYC, 2nd Stage in NYC, Denver Theatre Center, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Goodman Theater, Steppenwolf Theater, Teatro Vista, Teatro Luna, Fountain Theater, Clubbed Thumb, NEXT Theater and 16th Street Theater. Saracho was named one of nine national Latino “Luminarios” by Café magazine and given the first “Revolucionario” Award in Theater by the National Museum of Mexican Art. She is the founder of Teatro Luna (the first all-Latina Theatre Company in the nation) as well as the founder of ALTA (Alliance of Latino Theatre Artists). She is currently in development STARZ and Big Beach Films and under commission with:  South Coast Repertory Theatre and Two Rivers Theatre. Tanya is proud SAG/AFTRA actor.

Sandra Marquez (Director) is an educator, actor and director who has worked at many theaters in Chicago and beyond including The Goodman Theater, Steppenwolf Theater, Victory Gardens, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Madison Repertory, Second Stage Theater in New York and the Getty Villa in CA. She is a longtime and proud member of Teatro Vista where she received a Jeff Award for her performance in A View from the Bridge by Arthur Miller, and in 2016 she was thrilled to join the esteemed Steppenwolf Theater Company ensemble. Her film and TV credits include Chicago Med, Chicago Justice and Boss. She enjoys teaching and mentoring young people at Northwestern University where she is on the acting faculty.

Eddie Martinez (Abel) is an ensemble member of Teatro Vista in Chicago where he has been seen in Parachute Man and In the Time of the Butterflies among others. Select credits include: Fade (Denver Center, Cherry Lane, and TheaterWorks), Big Lake Big City, Cascabel (Lookinglass Theater); Our Lady of 121st Street(Steppenwolf); and Romeo y Julieta (Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Film/TV credits include: Sense8 (Netflix), Sirens (USA Network), Chicago Fire (NBC) and The Dilemma (Ron Howard). Eddie studied at Columbia College in Chicago.

Sari Sanchez (Lucia) is making her Victory Gardens debut.  Recent credits include In The Time Of The Butterflies (Teatro Vista), End Days (Windy City Playhouse), Tamer of Horses (Teatro Vista). Film & TV credits include: Signature Move, The Importance of Doubting Tom, Kill Game, “The Exorcist,” “Empire,” “Sirens,” and “Chicago Fire.”

Performance Schedule
Regular performances run November 11 – December 23, 2017: Tuesday — Friday at 7:30pm; Saturday at 3pm and 7:30pm; Sunday at 3pm.  Regular performances are $15-$56.

Victory Gardens has partnered with mobile theater ticketing app TodayTix to offer free tickets for the first preview of Fade. Free Tickets will be available via TodayTix mobile lottery, launching one week before the first preview on Friday, October 27, 2017. Winners will be notified by email and push notification between 12:00pm and 3:00pm on the day of the first preview, Saturday, November 4, 2017. 

Performances are at the Victory Gardens Theater, 2433 N Lincoln Avenue, in the heart of Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood. 

For tickets and information, call the Victory Gardens Box Office, 773.871.3000, email tickets@victorygardens.org, or visit www.victorygardens.org. Ask the Box Office about student tickets ($15), senior, and Access. For group discounts, call 872.817.9087.

Public Programs
Public Programs is an event series designed to enhance your experience by exploring themes and issues within Victory Gardens Theater’s productions. Connecting our theater to the world beyond the stage and rehearsal room, Public Programs bridge ideas, provoke dialogue, and deepen the relationship between our audiences and our productions.

A full and updated schedule of special events, post-show discussions, and presentations centered on performances of Fade is available at www.victorygardens.org . All events are free unless otherwise noted. For more information, call 773.871.3000 or visit the Victory Gardens website.

PASS/FAIL?
Post-Show Town Hall
November 7 | Tuesday | 9:30 p.m.
In Fade, Lucia is white-passing: she is Mexican, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at her. Many people hold identities that lie underneath the surface in race, ethnicity, sexuality, ability. Still others wear their identities conspicuously on the outside. Join us after tonight’s performance of Fade for a town hall conversation challenging assumptions and breaking open the concept of passing.

A CONVERSATION WITH TANYA Y SANDRA
Post-Show Conversation 
November 11 | Thursday | 9:30 p.m.
For decades, playwright Tanya Saracho and director Sandra Marquez have developed trust and friendship through their work together, collaborating as playwright-director and as playwright-actor. Join Tanya and Sandra as they give you an exclusive look into their collaboration over the years.

COLLEGE NIGHT: YES SHE CAN
Free Post-Show Performance
November 16 | Thursday | 9:30 p.m.
Women made up just 29% of TV’s screenwriters and just 20% of Broadway’s playwrights last year. Latina writers are scarcely recognized in this field and as successful screenwriter and Fade playwright Tanya Saracho proves, it’s not for lack of skill. Join us for a pre-show celebration in the lobby with free drinks and pizza. Then, stick around after tonight’s performance of Fade for free post-show scenes written by collegiate Latinas and directed and performed by their peers from DePaul University, Loyola University, Northwestern University, and Columbia College.

SHADES OF FADE
Free Pre-Show Performance
December 1 | Friday | 5:30 p.m.
For a hilarious play about a woman screenwriter, Fade as a title holds a myriad of literal and symbolic meanings. What lies beneath the surface? Join dynamic Latinx spoken word poets from across Chicago for a free pre-show performance as they respond to the word FADE and what it means for them in their lives and in their work. 

ENTER THE WRITERS’ ROOM 
Off-Night Conversation
December 4 | Monday | 6:30 p.m.
More and more, television showrunners and producers are looking for a playwrights’ touch in creating new shows. Programs like House of Cards, How to Get Away with Murder, The Exorcist, American Crime, and many more have working playwrights at the helm. What is the relationship between plays and the screen? How do writers navigate these worlds? Join Chicago-based playwrights and television writers in this off-night conversation event breaking down the realities of writing for the stage vs writing for the screen. 

NOCHE VICTORIA  
Post-Show Performance & Celebration
December 8 | Friday | 9:30 p.m.
Join us for an epic evening of performances showcasing the breadth of Chicago’s Latinx performance and storytelling talent. This late-night celebration and party will have free food, compliments of Fiesta Mexicana, and delicious discounted beverages. Cabaret-style performance includes stand-up, performance art, music, dancing, theater, and more!

Accessible Performances: 
Word for Word (open captioning): Friday, November 17 at 7:30pm, Saturday, November 18 at 3pm, and Wednesday, November 22 at 2pm

ASL Interpreted: Friday, November 17 at 7:30pm

Audio Description/Touch Tour: Friday, November 17 at 7:30pm 
(Touch tour at 6pm), Sunday, November 26 at 3pm (Touch tour at 1:30pm)


Victory Garden Major Season Support: Allstate, Alphawood Foundation, Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Trust, Exelon, Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, Ihe Joyce Foundation, The Mellon Foundation, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Prince Charitable Trust, The REAM Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, The Wallace Foundation, and Illinois Arts Council, a state agency

Playwright’s Society Sponsors: Karena Fiorenza Ingersoll and Emrys Ingersoll

17/18 Women’s Series Major Production Sponsors: Janice Miller

17/18 Women’s Series Production Sponsors: Doris Conant, Marcelle McVay and Dennis Zacek, Jeffrey Rappin and Penny Bron, Bill and Orli Staley Foundation

Travel Sponsor: Southwest Airlines



About Victory Gardens Theater
Under the leadership of Artistic Director Chay Yew and Managing Director Erica Daniels, Victory Gardens is dedicated to artistic excellence while creating a vital, contemporary American Theater that is accessible and relevant to all people through productions of challenging new plays and musicals.  Victory Gardens Theater is committed to the development, production and support of new plays that has been the mission of the theater since its founding, set forth by Dennis Začek, Marcelle McVay, and the original founders of Victory Gardens Theater.

Victory Gardens Theater is a leader in developing and producing new theater work and cultivating an inclusive Chicago theater community. Victory Gardens’ core strengths are nurturing and producing dynamic and inspiring new plays, reflecting the diversity of our city’s and nation’s culture through engaging diverse communities, and in partnership with Chicago Public Schools, bringing art and culture to our city’s active student population.  

Since its founding in 1974, the company has produced more world premieres than any other Chicago theater, a commitment recognized nationally when Victory Gardens received the 2001 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. Located in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, Victory Gardens Biograph Theater includes the Začek-McVay Theater, a state-of-the-art 259-seat mainstage and the 109-seat studio theater on the second floor, named the Richard Christiansen Theater.

Victory Gardens Ensemble Playwrights include Luis Alfaro, Philip Dawkins, Marcus Gardley, Ike Holter, Samuel D. Hunter, Naomi Iizuka, Tanya Saracho and Laura Schellhardt. Each playwright has a seven-year residency at Victory Gardens Theater. 

For more information about Victory Gardens, visit www.victorygardens.org.  Follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/victorygardens, Twitter @VictoryGardens and Instagram at instagram.com/victorygardenstheater/. 

Victory Gardens Theater receives major funding from the Wallace Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Joyce Foundation, Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, Shubert Foundation, The REAM Foundation, Alphawood Foundation, Allstate Insurance, Exelon, Polk Bros. Foundation, Crown Family Philanthropies, Edgerton Foundation, Bill and Orli Staley Foundation, and Illinois Arts Council Agency. Additional funding is provided by: Lloyd A. Fry Foundation,The McVay Foundation, Field Foundation of Illinois, Prince Charitable Trusts, Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Susan Payne/Metropolitan Capital Bank & Trust, Charles & M.R. Shapiro Foundation, Wrightwood Neighbors Association, Alliance Bernstein, Charles H. and Bertha L. Boothroyd Foundation, Golden Country Oriental Foods, John R. Halligan Charitable Fund, Mayer Brown LLP,  Roberta Olshansky Charitable Fund, Origin Ventures, Seabury Foundation, Southwest Airlines, Italian Village Restaurants, and Whole Foods Market.



About Teatro Vista
Teatro Vista produces, develops and commissions plays that explore the wealth and variety of the human experience from a Latinx perspective. The company provides work and professional advancement opportunities for Latinx theater artists, with special emphasis on the company’s ensemble members, and seeks to enhance the curricular goals of Chicago students through theatre. Teatro Vista was recently celebrated as one of “Chicago’s Cultural Leaders” by the Arts & Business Council of Chicago and received the League of Chicago Theatre’s Artistic Leadership Award.

Teatro Vista is supported by The Joyce Foundation, the Chicago Community Trust, Alphawood Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events of the City of Chicago, The Shubert Foundation, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation, the Chicago Latino Theater Alliance and The Saints.

For more information, visit TeatroVista.org, on Twitter (@TeatroVista), Facebook and Instagram.

OPENING: TEATRO VISTA'S LA HAVANA MADRID AT STEPPENWOLF'S 1700 THEATRE 4/14-5/21

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

TEATRO VISTA PRESENTS

LA HAVANA MADRID, 

SANDRA DELGADO'S IMMERSIVE RECREATION OF A 1960s LATINO CHICAGO NIGHTCLUB, 
APR. 14-MAY 21 
AT STEPPENWOLF'S 1700 THEATRE

Sandra Delgado, Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel, Phoebe González, Tommy Rivera-Vega, Donovan Diaz, Mike Oquendo, Krystal Ortiz and Marvin Quijada 

to star indocu-play based on true story of Chicago nightclub 

La Havana Madrid.

La Havana Madrid, Sandra Delgado's world premiere reincarnation of an actual 1960s Carribbean Chicago nightclub is debuting April 14-May 21, 2017 at Steppenwolf's new 1700 Theatre.

ChiIL Live Shows will be out for the press opening on Thursday, April 20th, so check back soon for our full review.

In addition to conceiving and writing La Havana Madrid, Delgado will play the title role of La Havana Madrid, a mystical woman who conjures vibrant songs and true stories in this immersive, documentary-style tale of La Havana Madrid, a popular 1960s melting pot for Caribbean Latino immigrants at the corner of Belmont and Sheffield in Chicago.

Well-known Chicago comedian and producer Mike Oquendo will portray Tony Quintana, the one-time owner of La Havana Madrid and host of the 1960s Chicago radio show "Tony's Latin A-Go-Go."

Rounding out the cast as Cuban, Colombian, Caribbean and Puerto Rican patrons, staff and musicians who all met, danced, loved and lost at La Havana Madrid are Teatro Vista ensemble members Cruz Gonzalez-Cadel, Tommy Rivera-Vega and Marvin Quijada, and, in their Teatro Vista debuts, Donovan Diaz, Phoebe González and Krystal Ortiz.
                                        
Legendary Colombian-American musician Roberto "Carpacho" Marin, joined by his band of 30 years, Carpacho y Su Super Combo, will perform live at every show. In fact, Carpacho's own story is one of the play's inspiring true vignettes. 
With Delgado as lead singer, Carpacho y Su Super Combo will chronicle the history of Caribbean Latino music, live, from mambo to the birth of salsa. 

Cheryl Lynn-Bruce, also a Teatro Vista ensemble member, will direct Delgado's theatrical, cinematic history of Latino Caribbeans in Chicago. 

The design team charged with crafting an intimate, immersive recreation of a lively 1960s music club in Steppenwolf's new 1700 Theatre - complete with cabaret seating, a bar, a dance floor and a small stage for a live band - are Ashley Woods (set), Elsa Hiltner (costumes),Heather Sparling (lights), Misha Fiksel (sound), Liviu Pasare (projections and video design) and William Carlos Angulo (choreography).

La Havana Madrid will premiere April 14-May 21, 2017 at Steppenwolf's 1700 Theatre, 1700 N. Halsted, Chicago, Steppenwolf's casual, intimate and flexible 80-seat space dedicated to showcasing the work of its ensemble and local theater companies like Teatro Vista. It is located immediately behind Front Bar: Coffee and Drinks, Steppenwolf's new 2,500 square ft. café & bar.

Previews are April 14-19: Wednesday through Saturday at
8 p.m.; Sunday at 4 p.m. 

Performances run through May 21: Thursday-Saturday at
8 p.m.; Sunday at 4 p.m. 
Single tickets are $15-$45, and go on sale February 3. Regular tickets are $35 (all previews and weekdays during the regular run) and $45 (Saturdays and Sundays). Student rush tickets are $15. Seniors 62+ and military tickets are $20. Steppenwolf Red and Black Card holders may use their cards as per Steppenwolf policies. For
tickets and information, visit Steppenwolf.org, TeatroVista.org or call (312) 335-1650. 

*Thursday, April 20 is an updated press date, rescheduled from the previously announced press opening, Saturday, April 22.

Following its run at Steppenwolf, Teatro Vista will present La Havana Madrid at The Miracle Center, 2311 N. Pulaski Rd., in Chicago's Belmont-Cragin neighborhood. This residency, funded by The Chicago Community Trust, is part of Teatro Vista's new program TEATRO VISTA, TEATRO VECINO (Spanish for "neighbor).



Behind the scenes of La Havana Madrid

"La Havana Madrid is about recapturing a lost chapter in Chicago history, and as a born and bred Chicagoan, this play is my love letter to the city I cherish," said Delgado, a Colombian-American actor, writer, and producer, well-known to Chicago audiences. 

In the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s, Latinos from Caribbean countries such as Puerto Rico and Cuba settled all along Chicago's lakefront, from North Avenue to Devon.

Although from different countries, music brought them together. Their shared rhythms -  African rhythms - became the guaguanco, the mambo and the merengue. Now in the United States, these rhythms merged with traditional big band sounds and eventually became salsa. 

On the North side of Chicago, a handful of Latino music clubs opened up: Coco Loco on Lincoln Avenue, The Mirror Lounge on North Avenue and La Havana Madrid on Belmont and Sheffield. While the history of La Havana Madrid may be fuzzy, what is known is Cubans opened it in the early 1960s and the club became a busy melting pot for newly arrived Latinos in Chicago. It's believed La Havana Madrid closed in the mid-1970s.

In addition to support from The Chicago Community Trust, Delgado received a 2015 Joyce Award and a 3Arts 3AP Project Grant to support the development of La Havana Madrid. She developed the script as a member of the 2015-16 Playwright's Unit at Goodman Theatre.



About Teatro Vista

Teatro Vista (TeatroVista.org) produces, develops and commissions plays that explore the wealth and variety of the human experience from a Latinx perspective. The company provides work and professional advancement opportunities for Latinx theatre artists, with special emphasis on the company's ensemble members, and seeks to enhance the curricular goals of Chicago students through theatre. 

Teatro Vista was recently celebrated as one of "Chicago's Cultural Leaders" by the Arts & Business Council of Chicago and received the League of Chicago Theatre's Artistic Leadership Award.                                                                        
Teatro Vista's primary focus is producing new works by Latinx theatre artists and presenting classic plays featuring artists of color. Its artistic vision is shaped by the company's ensemble members, a group of multi-generational, multi-ethnic and multi-disciplinary artists. They inform Teatro Vista's artistic aesthetic by devising original works as well as by selecting plays with themes that are engaging and relevant to Chicago's diverse population.

Teatro Vista founded in 1990 by Edward Torres and Henry Godinez. As Teatro Vista's first Artistic Director, Godinez guided the company during the formative years. He helped stage successful productions and establish vital relationships with other theatre companies and artists. When Godinez stepped down, Torres was appointed Artistic Director. Under Torres' direction, Teatro Vista used the stage to engage, connect and challenge audience members using the company's mission as his guide. In 2012, Torres moved to New York and the Board of Directors promoted longtime Associate Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez to the position of Executive Artistic Director.

In addition to Gutiérrez, Teatro Vista ensemble members include Charín Álvarez, Max Arciniega, Desmín Borges, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Ramón Camín, Ivonne Coll, Laura Dahl, Sandra Delgado, Liza Fernández, Khanisha Foster, Erik Juárez, Jon Lyon, Sandra Márquez, Joe Minoso, Christina Nieves, Marvin Quijada, Tommy Rivera-Vega, Gabriel Ruíz, Cecilia Suarez and co-founder Edward Torres. 

Teatro Vista's Board of Directors includes Ezequiel "Zeek" Agosto, President; Rodrigo García and Rosanna Márquez, Vice Presidents; Joan Pantsios, Secretary; Tom Vega-Byrnes, Treasurer; and Bhuvana Badrinathan, José Antonio Cruz, Edgar Delgado, Ricardo Gutiérrez, Yolanda Hardy and Kareem Mohamednur.

Teatro Vista is supported by The Joyce Foundation, Alphawood Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events of the City of Chicago, The Shubert Foundation, TheGaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation and The Saints.

Purple Group and Cumberland Irving are Teatro Vista's Headline Season Sponsors. Teatro Vista is a Victory Gardens Resident Theater.

OPENING: Teatro Vista Presents the World Premiere of The Wolf at The End of The Block at Victory Gardens

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

IKE HOLTER'S INTENSE NEW THRILLER 

THE WOLF AT THE END OF THE BLOCK 

IS TEATRO VISTA'S NEXT WORLD PREMIERE, 

JANUARY 28-MARCH 5, 2017

Here at ChiIL Live Shows, we've thoroughly enjoyed Ike Holter's works so far, and his unique vision, so we're eager to check out this world premiere. We will be out for the press opening, so check back soon for our full review.

Chicago. Fall. One night, a boarded up bar on the dark side of the block becomes a terrifying crime scene. 

In the next 48 hours, the neighborhood digs deep 

into escalating mystery, working against time to separate fact from fiction. 

But as the clock ticks down, the clues spiral into a razor sharp jigsaw, 

and what began as a simple mystery 

quickly twists into a personal, pointed and political thriller.  

That's the highly charged set-up for the newest work by acclaimed Chicago playwright Ike Holter, author of such contemporary hits as Hit the Wall, Exit Strategy and Sender.

    

Teatro Vista, Chicago's leading Latinx professional company, commissioned The Wolf at The End of The Block, and will present its world premiere January 28 through March 5, 2017 at Chicago's Victory Gardens Theater. 

Teatro Vista Ensemble members Sandra Márquez and Gabriel Ruíz, along with Bear Bellinger, James D. Farruggio and Ayssette Muñoz will star in Holter's in-the-moment exploration of racial profiling, media manipulation and family relationships. 

Ricardo Gutiérrez, Teatro Vista Executive Artistic Director and director of The Wolf at The End of The Block, says "get ready for a riveting new, full-length play from one of Chicago's hottest young playwrights The story is set in Chicago and has five characters, three of which are Latino. Holter's play is brutally raw, funny and deftly pierces universal truths."

The production team for The Wolf at The End of The Block includes Milo Bue (set), Uriel Gómez (costumes), Diane D. Fairchild (lights), Erik Backus (sound) and Jamie Karas(props). Stage manager is Stephanie Hurovitz.

Teatro Vista will debut The Wolf at The End of The Block in the Richard Christiansen Theater at Victory Gardens, located at 2433 N. Lincoln Avenue at the historic Biograph Theater in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood. 

Previews are Saturday, January 28 at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, January 29 at 3 p.m., and Wednesday through Thursday, February 1-3 at 7:30 p.m.

Opening Night is Saturday, February 4 at 7:30 p.m. 

Performances run through March 5: Thursday through Saturday at 

7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 3 p.m. 

Preview are $20. Performances are $25-$30. Student tickets are $15. Senior tickets are $18. Up to 20 Early Bird tickets are available on a first come, first served basis for $18. Use code EARLYBIRD. 

For tickets and information on group rates, visit TeatroVista.org, call the Victory Gardens box office, (773) 871-3000, or visit Tuesday through Friday, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday, 12 p.m. to 

6 p.m., or Sunday, 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Metered, street and valet parking is available near the Biograph. The theater is easily accessed on the CTA Red, Purple and Brown lines via the Fullerton stop. The CTA 8 Halsted and 74 Fullerton buses also stop at Fullerton and Halsted, 1/2 block south of the theater. For more information, visit VictoryGardens.org/PlanYourVisit.

Behind the scenes of  

The Wolf at The End of The Block

Playwright Ike Holter's work has been produced at The Steppenwolf Garage, A Red Orchid, The New Colony and The Inconvenience, where he is a founding member and resident writer. He's received fellowships and commissions from the Goodman Theater, the Kennedy Center and The Playwrights Center. His show Hit the Wall played at Steppenwolf Garage, Off-Broadway at The Barrow Street Theater in New York, and recently enjoyed an extended run at the Lily Tomlin Center in L.A. Jackalope Theatre premiered his play Exit Strategy which played to sold-out houses and transferred to Michigan's 3 Oaks Theater Festival. It was produced at Philadelphia Stages and transferred Off Broadway to Primary Stages last spring. His most recent play Sender was a smash hit last season for A Red Orchid. Holter was named the "Chicagoan of the Year in Theater 2014" by the Chicago Tribune. His monologues have been published in The New Yorker and several editions of Applause Books. He was recently named one of Victory Gardens' newest ensemble playwrights.

Teatro Vista Executive Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez (director) most recently staged the company's 2016-17 season opener, Mando Alvarado's Parachute Men, also the inaugural production of the Latina/o Theatre Commons' new El Fuego Initiative. Other Teatro Vista directing credits include In The Time of the Butterflies, Between You, Me & The Lampshade, A View From The Bridge, Momma's Boyz, i put the fear of mexico in 'em and La Mágica Posada. He is co-founder of the Alliance of Latinx Theatre Artists of Chicago (ALTA), a service organization dedicated to promoting and fostering Latinx theatre artists in Chicago. As an actor, Gutiérrez just returned from performing Destiny of Desire at South Coast Repertory, which will be remounted in March at the Goodman Theatre. He also appeared in In The Heights at the Paramount and in the world premieres of Song For The Disappeared and Fish Men at the Goodman. He has performed on stage at the Actors Theatre in Louisville, Denver Center Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, Victory Gardens and Lookingglass Theatre. TV credits include Chicago PD, Sirens and Boss. Before joining Teatro Vista, Gutiérrez served as the artistic director of Nosotros in Los Angeles and The Canterbury Theatre in Indiana.

Meet the cast

Gabriel Ruiz (Abe) is a graduate of the DePaul Theatre School and a proud ensemble member of Teatro Vista. Chicago credits include White Tie Ball for Teatro Vista, Singin' in the Rain and City of Angels at Marriott, Man in the Ring and Agamemnon at Court Theater, Arcadia and Company at Writers' Theatre, The Upstairs Concierge at Goodman Theater, Creditors at Remy Bumpo Theater, How Long Will I Cry?, Motherfucker with the Hat and The Way West at Steppenwolf, Sita Ram for the Chicago Children's Choir, Working: The Musical at The Broadway Playhouse, Richard III at Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Arabian Nights at Lookingglass Theater. Regional credits include Native Gardens at The Cincinnati Playhouse, Harvey at Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Why Torture is Wrong, and the People Who Love Them at Forward Theater Company and Blood and Gifts at The Lincoln Center in New York. He can also be seen as Dilip Singh in both seasons of Boss on the Starz Network.

Sandra Marquez (Frida) is an actor, director and educator, as well as a longtime ensemble member and former Associate Artistic Director (1998-2006) of Teatro Vista. Earlier this season she played Clytemnestra in Court Theater's production of Electra. Last spring she joined the ensemble of Steppenwolf Theater where she most recently appeared in the world premiere of Mary Page Marlowe by Tracy Letts. As an actor Marquez has worked at respected venues in Chicago and beyond including the Goodman, Steppenwolf, Victory Gardens, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Madison Repertory and New York's off-Broadway house, Second Stage Theater, Uptown. Next summer she will play Clytemnestra in Iphigenia at Aulis for the remount of Court's production at the Getty Villa in California. Film and TV credits include The Big Bang Theory, Chicago Code, Boss, Chicago Med and Timer. She has been a member of the theater faculty at Northwestern University since 1995. As a director, Marquez' credits include Teatro Vista's production of Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner by Luis Alfaro and the critically acclaimed production of Our Lady of the Underpass by Tanya Saracho, which went on to receive a Jeff nomination for best production. More recently she directed Manana Comes (Chicago premiere) by Elizabeth Irwin (Teatro Vista), and Men on the Verge of Hispanic Breakdown by Guillermo Rodriguez (Pride Films and Plays).

James D. Farruggio (James) has performed in Of Mice and Men and To Kill a Mockingbird (Steppenwolf for Young Adults), Show Boat (Lyric Opera of Chicago), Bethany, Streamers, Stop/Kiss, The Ruby Sunrise, Suicide, Incorporated, Northwest Highway; Oh, The Humanity (and other exclamations), Almost Maine, Vigils and Broadsword as well as Ten.2012, Ten.2013 and Ten.2014 (The Gift Theatre), The Kentucky Cycle (Infamous Commonwealth Theatre) and Stage Door (Griffin Theatre). Film and television credits include APB, Batman Dark Knight, The Beast, Prison Break, Crisis, Chicago PD and The Playboy Club.

Ayssette Muñoz (Miranda), selected by the Chicago Tribune's Chris Jones as one of 2015's "Top 10 Hot New Faces of Chicago Theatre," is an artistic associate at Teatro Vista, where her credits include Maria Teresa in In the Time of the Butterflies, Amparo in Between You, Me & The Lampshade, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet and Catherine in A View from the Bridge. Other local credits include Adriana in The Comedy of Errors (Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival), Hope in Urinetown (Thirteen O'Clock Theatre), Juliet (u/s) in Romeo and Juliet (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Marisol in the staged reading of Marisol (Goodman Theater Latino Festival), and an episode of Chicago PD.  

Bear Bellinger (Nunley) is making his Teatro Vista debut. He has been seen in Chicago productions with The Inconvenience, The Hypocrites (The Adding Machine), Chicago Children's Theatre (Mr. Chickee's Funny Money), Paramount Theatre (Miss Saigon) and Court Theatre among others. 

More about Teatro Vista's 2016-17 season

Following The Wolf at The End of The Block, Teatro Vista's season finale is the world premiere of La Havana Madrid, a theatrical, cinematic and musical history of Latinx Caribbeans in Chicago by ensemble member Sandra Delgado. Fellow ensemble member Cheryl Lynn Bruce directs Delgado's immersive documentary theater experience, complete with live music, based on the true story of the 1960's Chicago nightclub, La Havana Madrid. Previews begin April 14. Press opening is Saturday, April 22 at 8 p.m. Performances run through May 21.

About Teatro Vista

Teatro Vista (TeatroVista.org) produces, develops and commissions plays that explore the wealth and variety of the human experience from a Latinx perspective. The company provides work and professional advancement opportunities for Latinx theatre artists, with special emphasis on the company's ensemble members, and seeks to enhance the curricular goals of Chicago students through theatre. 

Teatro Vista was recently celebrated as one of "Chicago's Cultural Leaders" by the Arts & Business Council of Chicago and received the League of Chicago Theatre's Artistic Leadership Award.                                                                        

Teatro Vista's primary focus is producing new works by Latinx theatre artists and presenting classic plays featuring artists of color. Its artistic vision is shaped by the company's ensemble members, a group of multi-generational, multi-ethnic and multi-disciplinary artists. They inform Teatro Vista's artistic aesthetic by devising original works as well as by selecting plays with themes that are engaging and relevant to Chicago's diverse population.

Teatro Vista founded in 1990 by Edward Torres and Henry Godinez. As Teatro Vista's first Artistic Director, Godinez guided the company during the formative years. He helped stage successful productions and establish vital relationships with other theatre companies and artists. When Godinez stepped down, Torres was appointed Artistic Director. Under Torres' direction, Teatro Vista used the stage to engage, connect and challenge audience members using the company's mission as his guide. In 2012, Torres moved to New York and the Board of Directors promoted longtime Associate Artistic Director Ricardo Gutiérrez to the position of Executive Artistic Director.

In addition to Gutiérrez, Teatro Vista ensemble members include Charín Álvarez, Max Arciniega, Desmín Borges, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Ramón Camín, Ivonne Coll, Laura Dahl, Sandra Delgado, Liza Fernández, Khanisha Foster, Erik Juárez, Jon Lyon, Sandra Márquez, Joe Minoso, Christina Nieves, Marvin Quijada, Tommy Rivera-Vega, Gabriel Ruíz, Cecilia Suarez and co-founder Edward Torres. 

Teatro Vista's Board of Directors includes Ezequiel "Zeek" Agosto, President; Rodrigo García and Rosanna Márquez, Vice Presidents; Joan Pantsios, Secretary; Tom Vega-Byrnes, Treasurer; and Bhuvana Badrinathan, José Antonio Cruz, Edgar Delgado, Ricardo Gutiérrez, Yolanda Hardy and Kareem Mohamednur.

Teatro Vista is supported by The Joyce Foundation, Alphawood Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events of the City of Chicago, The Shubert Foundation, TheGaylord and Dorothy Donnelly Foundation and The Saints.

Purple Group and Cumberland Irving are Teatro Vista's Headline Season Sponsors. Teatro Vista is a Victory Gardens Resident Theater.