Week 3 of DESTINOS, 5th CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL LATINO THEATER FESTIVAL Opens This Week

Welcome to Week Three of Destinos, the 5th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival, Chicago's annual citywide live theater showcase of Latino artists and companies from Chicago, the U.S. and Latin America, running now through October 16, 2022.

This week, Destinos opens three hot new productions on some of Chicago's top stages. Each celebrates the Latino experience, and makes attending live theater an ideal way to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month in Chicago.

Visit destinosfest.org to purchase tickets and for show information. Sign up for CLATA's weekly e-newsletter for first notice of festival events. Keep up with Destinos on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, all at @latinotheater.

This week's three Destinos openers are:

Opens Wednesday and Thursday, September 28 and 29 at 7:30 p.m.

Alma

World Premiere

American Blues Theater, Chicago

in cooperation with Center Theatre Group

Presented at Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, 5779 N. Ridge in Edgewater

September 22-October 22

Previews September 22-25: Thursday and Friday at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

Opens Wednesday and Thursday, September 28 and 29 at 7:30 p.m.

Runs through October 22: Thursday and Friday at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday at

3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Exceptions: No 3 p.m. show Saturday, October 1. No 7:30 p.m. show Saturday, October 22.

Performed in English with some Spanish

Runs 80 minutes

Tickets: $25-$45

Alma ha cruzado la frontera hace 17 años en busca del Sueño Americano. En la víspera del SAT de su hija Angel, nacida en los EE. UU., Alma cree que todo el sacrificio y el trabajo que ha hecho durante tantos años darán sus frutos. Pero existe un problema: Angel tiene otros planes para su futuro. Alma del dramaturgo Benjamin Benne es una exploración honesta y compleja de la generación de inmigrantes y sus hijos de primera generación. Ganador del premio Blue Ink y el premio National Latinx Play.

Alma has single-handedly raised her daughter, Angel, on tough love, home-cooked comida, and lots of prayers. But on the eve of the all-important SAT, Alma discovers her daughter isn't at home studying. A sacrifice from Alma's past weighs heavy on their present; now, Alma fears her worst nightmare may soon be their reality. Will the American Dream cost them a life together?

Winner of the 2019 National Latinx Playwriting Award and 2019 Blue Ink Playwriting Award. Written by Benjamin Benne and directed by Ana Velazquez. Starring Jazmín Corona (Zulema with Goodman/Sones de Mexico) and Bryanna Ciera Colón (national tour of The Elf on The Shelf: A Christmas Musical). americanbluestheatre.com



Opens Thursday, September 29 at 8 p.m.

Blanco Temblor

U.S. Premiere

Teatro Público, Puerto Rico

at The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Wicker Park

September 29-October 2

Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m.

Performed in Spanish with English subtitles

Runs 100 minutes

Tickets: $26-$31

Blanco Temblor es una reflexión, entre risas, silencios, música, movimiento, en torno a un tema que no se visibiliza, de lo que no se habla, nuestra salud mental. La pieza cuenta la historia de Marina del Mar, doctora en astrofísica puertorriqueña, bipolar y con una enfermedad de nacimiento: no puede temblar. Presenciamos el encuentro de Marina del Mar con sus afectos vivos y muertos, su tránsito por los abismos y las luces de su psiquis.

Blanco Temblor is a reflection, between laughter, silence, music, and movement, around a topic that is not visible, what is not talked about, our mental health. The play tells the story of Marina del Mar, a doctor in quantum astrophysics, Puerto Rican, bipolar with a disease from birth: she cannot tremble. Witness the meeting of Marina del Mar with her living and dead affections, her transit through the abysses, and the lights of her psyche.

Blanco Temblor is written and directed by Carola Garcia, and features Isel Rodriguez, Carola Garcia, Yussef Soto Villarini, Maximiliano Rivas and Laura Isabel Cabrera. Teatro Público is a women-led theater company committed to the development of a solid theater culture in Puerto Rico through excellence, diversity, innovation, community building, social impact and international exchange. teatropublicopr.org

Opens Thursday, September 29 at 8 p.m.

Evolution of a Sonero

Midwest Premiere

UrbanTheater Company, Chicago

2620 W. Division St. in Humboldt Park

September 29-October 23

Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m.; Sundays at 4 p.m.

Performed in English and Spanish

Runs 80 minutes

Tickets: $42.50

Con un amor descarado por El Bronx, un don para crear personajes memorables y humor, el aclamado artista Flaco Navaja, y el The Razor Blades, aportan el encanto, el ritmo y el alma vital de un Bronx Sonero. Rindiendo homenaje a íconos musicales, desde Janis Joplin a Menudo, de The Doors a Héctor Lavoe y desde Jimi Hendrix a Rubén Blades, esta producción retrata no solo la evolución creativa de Navaja sino también la mezcla salvaje que da vida a una rima, un pueblo y una cultura.

Evolution of a Sonero, the first full-length solo show written and performed by poet, actor, singer and Latino favorite Flaco Navaja, is a fresh salsa epic about growing up, getting inspired and staying on track. With unabashed love for the Bronx, a gift for crafting memorable characters and genuine good humor, Navaja and five musicians -aka The Razor Blades-bring on the charm, the rhythm, and the soul essential to a Bronx Sonero. Paying homage to musical icons - from Janis Joplin to Menudo, from The Doors to Héctor Lavoe, from Jimi Hendrix to Rubén Blades - the play is as much about Navaja's creative evolution as it is the wild mix that gives life to a rhyme, a people and a culture.

Evolution of a Sonero is directed by UrbanTheater Producing Artistic Director Miranda González. UrbanTheater Company (UTC) is founded by, led by, and for people of color in order to preserve the Puerto Rican and Humboldt Park community voice, celebrating cultural experiences through interdisciplinary art forms. Through fellowship and community UTC aims to elevate a diverse and culturally specific collective of Chicago creatives driven to create innovative and accessible theater through a decolonized praxis. urbantheaterchicago.org

Week 4: October 5-9

BULL: a love story

World Premiere
Paramount Theatre, Aurora
at the Copley Theatre, 8 E. Galena Blvd. in downtown Aurora
October 5-November 20
Previews October 5-9: Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. and 7 p.m., Thursday at
7 p.m.; Friday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.
Opens Wednesday and Thursday, October 12 and 13 at 7 p.m.
Performances continue through November 20: Wednesdays at 1:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Thursdays at 7 p.m.; Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sundays at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.
Performed in English
Runs 2 hours with intermission
Tickets: $35 with promo code DESTINOS online, via phone or in person at the Paramount box office. Good for performances during festival dates, October 5-16, excluding opening nights, October 12 and 13. Discount may not be combined with any other offer. Regular tickets are $67 to $74

Bull vendió drogas, lo atraparon y cumplió su condena. Durante una década, ha estado pensado solo en una idea: volver a casa. El día que Bull sale de prisión, regresa a su antiguo barrio de Chicago, Lakeview, ahora irreconocible. Esperanzado y ansioso, está listo para reanudar la vida con su familia, solo para descubrir cuánto han progresado sin él. Su sueño está al alcance de la mano. ¿Qué necesitará para llegar a casa?

Bull dealt drugs, got caught, and served his time. For a decade, he's thought about one thing: coming home. On the day Bull is released from prison, he returns to his old Chicago neighborhood, Lakeview, now unrecognizable. Hopeful and eager, he is ready to resume life with his family, only to discover how much has moved on without him. His dream now within grasp, what will it take to get home?

BULL: a love story is written by Chicago playwright Nancy García Loza, who with the National Museum of Mexican Art just won a prestigious 2022 Joyce Award. BULL: a love story, directed by Laura Alcalá Baker, is part of Paramount Theatre's inaugural BOLD Series, and makes downtown Aurora the first suburban destination in Destinos history. paramountaurora.com

Week 5: October 10-16

Sancocho

Midwest Premiere

Visión Latino Theater Company, Chicago

Windy City Playhouse, 3014 W. Irving Park Rd. in Irving Park

October 8-30

Previews Saturday, October 8 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, October 9 at 3 p.m.

Opens Monday, October 10 at 7:30 p.m.

Continues through October 30: Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.; Sundays at 3 p.m.

No show Thursday, October 13

Performed in English with some Spanish

Runs 2 hours

Tickets: $30; $45 VIP Experience; $60 VIP Experience Plus; $25 groups of 5 or more

Caridad y Renata son hermanas y se llevan 25 años de diferencia. La salud de su padre empeora día a día, y Renata como su apoderada, es responsable de redactar su testamento. Para aliviar la tensión, Renata visita a Caridad mientras prepara un sancocho. La preparación del guiso llevará a las hermanas a través de un viaje que transitará la cultura, la feminidad, el trauma transgeneracional y la historia familiar. Todo va bien hasta que Renata comparte noticias sobre una herencia inesperada, lo que hace que Caridad confiese sobre el hijo ilegítimo de su padre, Eduardo. Las hermanas tendrán que decidir si deberá ser incluido en el testamento de su padre.

Caridad and Renata are sisters, 25 years apart. Their father's health condition is worsening day by day. Renata is a lawyer, and as her father's proxy, is responsible for writing his will. To relieve the tension, Renata visits Caridad while she is making sancocho, a traditional Latino stew. As they prepare the sancocho, the sisters begin a journey of their culture, womanhood, transgenerational trauma, and family history. All is well until Renata shares some unexpected news, causing Caridad to spill the beans about their father's illegitimate son.

Sancocho is written by Christin Eve Cato and directed by Xavier M. Custodio. Visión Latino Theater Company, Latinos with a Visión, was founded in August of 2014 by Xavier Custodio, Yajaira Custodio and Johnathan Nieves to break down racial boundaries and to open the minds of audiences to Latino struggles and perseverance through theater. visionlatino.com

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