Review: Stunning ZOOT SUIT Revival at Taper Mirrors Present Day Politics

Zoot Suit/written and directed by Luis Valdez/Mark Taper Forum (MTF)/through March 19

Let's get one thing perfectly clear from the get.go. Luis Valdez's Zoot Suit which premiered at the Mark Taper Forum and on Broadway in 1978, is a milestone. Broadway had not seen anything quite like it up to that point. First of all, it put Mexicans into the mainstream ... and their Pachuco culture, including their music and dance. In form it's a serious play about the Zoot Suit murders of 1942 in Southern California, but it is laced with humor, song and dance, classifying it in both realms of fact and fantasy. Now, after 39 years, in the 50th anniversary year of Center Theatre Group, Zoot Suit returns in an all new revival, once again directed by the brilliant Valdez. It has a fantastic cast, is high on entertainment value...and its issues do indeed mirror those present in today's politically ruthless world.

The play begins and ends with El Pachuco (Demian Bichir), the narrator of the play, whose slick, raunchy sense of humor really pulls the audience in with flair and gusto. This guy with his Zoot suit, long coat and wide pants, gives off the impression of a diamond in the rough, egotistically bigger than life but at the core possessing a really basic and wise comprehension of the culture's downtrodden, hopeless future in mainstream society. Dreaming will not make it change; these Pachucos must stand up and fight mightily for their rights. Henry Reyna (Matias Ponce) is a Mexican accused of being the ringleader of a gang that committed murder in the infamous Sleepy Lagoon murder case of 1942. He and three of his buddies Ismael "Smiley" Torres (Raul Cardona), Joey Castro (Oscar Camacho) and Tommy Roberts (Caleb Foote), the only white boy in the gang, are thrown in jail and stand trial for the murder whose facts are based purely on circumstantial evidence. The issue here is when the attorney for the prosecution makes his statement he calls the facts of the case irrelevent and what is relevent is that these Mexican boys are guilty because of who they are and what they represent in the world of white supremacy.

Supporting Henry are his family, his mother and father (Daniel Valdez and Rose Portillo), sister Lupe (Stephani Candelaria) and young brother Rudy (Andres Ortiz) who remain proud of their heritage. Disregarding race, they're a pretty normal family. Yes, the kids drink and party too much and smoke pot, but this does not make them criminals. Henry has a loyal girlfriend Della (Jeanine Mason), who is thrown in a Ventura detention center for simply telling the truth under oath about the gang's whereabouts the night of the murder. Sadly, unjustly, they lose the case and it goes into appeal. While in San Quentin, Henry becomes attracted to the loyal reporter who leads the gang's appeal Alice Bloomfield (Tiffany Dupont), and what evolves by play's end is a romantic triangle.

Important to note that throughout the trial and the gang's imprisonment, the Pachuco as narrator and observer is lurking about like the ringmaster of a circus, of course in Henry's mind, stimulating him to take action. Then within a flash he breaks into a musical number in which the ensemble sing and dance their hearts out along with him to the strains of Lalo Guerrero's delightfully upbeat music and displaying the splashy choreography of Maria Torres. Costume design by Ann Closs-Farley is superb as is the two-leveled scenic design by Christopher Acebo. Philip G. Allen's sound design is incredible, and Pablo Santiago's lighting design, spot.on.

Under Valdez's superior hand, the cast are phenomenal. Bichir is a wonder as Pachuco. It's one thing to set the style of this culture with exaggerated Chicano speech and movement, but ... in moments of silence to convey complete pride in spite of humiliation as he walks backwards - perfectly tall and stalwart up the staircase clad simply in bakini underwear - is amazing to behold. Ponce is a tower of strength and intensity as Henry, never missing a beat. Mason and Dupont are wonderful in their desperate moments of loving Henry. Cardona, Camacho and Foote as Henry's gang make each character a distinct individual. Special praise to Brian Abraham as George Shearer, the attorney assigned to the case. From a family of immigrants himself, George understands the big picture, and Abraham makes his points with clarity and conviction.

Particularly optimistic in Valdez's script is that in the end there are two ways of judging Henry Reyna. Some, like the law, will never see him as anyone but a criminal, as he did have other altercations throughout his life. Others, however, revere his positive accomplishments. He won a medal of honor, serving his country and many members of his large family graduated from colleges and led productive lives.

Don't miss Zoot Suit at the Taper through March 19! It is one extremely original entertainment, with something for everyone. You will leave the theatre richer for the colorful Pachuco experience.

www.centertheatregroup.org

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