BWW Reviews: Blanco's Chavez Rocks @ Hollywood Fringe Festival

Cesar Chavez was a nonviolent leader, who, for many, came close to sainthood. The beauty of Fred Blanco's work is that he humanizes the legend and puts the man at arm's reach. He was, after all, a bilingual campesino, born of humble beginnings. But the asset of speaking another language worked ridiculously against him. Always moving forward and upward, however, amidst verbal and physical obstacles, he eventually gave migrant farm workers their very first union in an excrutiatingly long civil rights struggle that literally killed him.

The play opens as Chavez prays to the Virgen of Guadalupe for guidance during a 1968 fast. Known for his 'squeaky clean' appearance and attitude and love of learning, Chavez grew up to respect the rights of others despite the odds. He believed in solidarity and no story tells it better than Blanco's anecdote of two traveling vaqueros who spot a hornet and refuse to strike it for fear that the other hornets will come. If animals can help each other in time of need, Chavez saw hope for humanity, rallying his fellow men to come together with equal strength and determination.

Blanco portrays a bevy of characters - both male and female, campesinos who had only dirty polluted water to drink, but never lost their faith. The teatro campesino comes vibrantly alive within the actor's power as he recreates with a single turn of his body - the worker and the cruel patrocino or boss man, determined to defeat him. He effectively uses masks on the front and back sides of his head and a mere change of voice to beautifully represent the opposing sides. As the campesinos themselves said, what art can be achieved with 'a little spit, gum, grease and creativity'! This was an art for social change that would allow the young to fight against
injustice.

This is a labor of love for Blanco and a wonderfully educational piece for teenagers to enhance their study of Cesar Chavez - who insisted on nonviolence as the strongest force in the world. Put aside the harmful weapons of war - that are now destroying our entire world- and use social weapons like protest marches, boycotts and strikes to make a difference. Blanco uses a few sturdy props and a simple change of hat or jacket here and there but relies mostly on his actor's resilient interior life, his gritty and intensely humane instrument, to make the message echo loud and clear.

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The Stories of Cesar Chavez
developed & performed by Fred Blanco
Theatre Asylum, Hollywood
part of Hollywood Fringe Festival
remaining performances: tonight -June 21 @ 7 pm, June 24 @ 10 am, June 26 @ 2:30 pm
ideal for school groups

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